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I 


MRS.  PETER    RABBIT 


BOOKS  BY 

THORNTON  W.   BURGESS 


BEDTIME  STORY-BOOKS 

1.  The  Adventures  of  Eeddt  Fox 

2.  The  Adventures  op  Johnny  Chuck 

3.  The  Adventures  of  Peter  Cottontjlil 

4.  The  Adventures  of  Unc'  Billy  Possum 
6.  Thb  Adventures  of  Mr.  Mocker 

6.  The  Adventures  of  Jerry  Muskrat 

7.  The  Adventures  OF  DannyMeadow  Mouse 

8.  The  Adventures  of  Grandfather  Frog 

9.  The  Adventures  of  Chatterer,  the  Red 

Squirrel 

10.  The  Adventures  of  Sammy  Jay 
11  The  Adventures  OF  Buster  Bear 

12.  The  Adventures  op  Old  Mr.  Toad 

13.  The  Adventures  of  Prickly  Porky 

14.  The  Adventures  of  Old  Man  Coyote 

15.  The  Adventures  op  Paedy  the  Beaver 

16.  The  Adventures  op  Poor  Mrs.  Quack 

17.  The  Adventures  of  Bobby  Coon 
18  The  Adventures  of  Jimmy  Skunk 

19.  The  Adventures  of  Bob  White 

20.  The  Adventures  of  Ol'  Mistah  Buzzard 


MOTHER  WEST  WIND  SERIES 

1.  Old  Mother  West  Wind 

2.  Mother  West  Wind's  Children 

3.  Mother  West  Wind's  Animal  Friends 

4.  Mother  West  Wind's  Neighbors 

5.  Mother  West  Wind  "Why"  Stories 

6.  Mother  West  Wind  ''How"  Stories 

7.  Mother  West  Wind  "When"  Stories 

8.  Mother  West  Wind  "Where"  Stories 


1. 

2. 
3. 

4. 

GREEN  MEADOW  SERIES 

Happy  Jack 
Mrs.  Peter  Rabbit 
Bowser  the  Hound 
Old  Granny  Fox 

THE  BURGESS  BIRD  BOOK 

FOR  CHILDREN 

THE  BURGESS  ANIMAL  BOOK 

FOR  CHILDREN 


BURGESS  ™^l  QUADDIES  mark 

MRS.  PETER  RABBIT 


BY 


THORNTON  W.  BURGESS 


WUh  Illustrations  by 
HARRISON  CADY 


non-refekT 


fflWVAP- Q3S 


BOSTON 

LITTLE,   BROWN,   AND   COMPANY 

1920 


/  o 


Copyright,  1919, 
By  Little,  Brown,  and  Company. 


All  rights  reserved 
Published,  September,  1919 


Set  up  and  electrotyped  by  J.  S.  Cusking  Co.,  Norwood,  Mass.,  U.S.A. 


Metrication 

TO  MY  DAUGHTER 
WHOSE  ASSISTANCE  IN  THE  PREPARATION 
OF  THIS  VOLUME  HAS  BEEN  INVALUABLE 
IT  IS  MOST  AFFECTIONATELY  DEDICATED 


CONTENTS 

OHAPTEB  PAOB 

I    Peter  Rabbit  Loses  His  Appetite  1 

II    Peter  Rabbit  Plans  a  Journey     .  8 

III  Hooty  the  Owl  Changes  His  Hunt- 

ing Grounds 15 

IV  The  Shadow  with  Sharp  Claws     .  20 
V    In  the  Old  Pasture         ...  26 

VI    Peter  Rabbit  is  Still  Lonesome    .  32 

VII    Peter  Finds  Tracks         ...  37 
VIII    The   Strange   Tracks  in  the   Old 

Pasture 43 

IX    An  Unpleasant  Surprise  ...  60 
X    Peter   Rabbit  Almost  Decides  to 

Return  Home         ....  66 
XI    Peter  Rabbit  Has  a  Sudden  Change 

OF  Mind 63 

XII    Peter     Learns     Something     from 

Tommy  Tit 69 

XIII  Little  Miss  Fuzzytail     ...  76 

XIV  Some  One  Fools  Old  Jed  Thumper  .  82 
XV    A  Pleasant  Surprise  for  Peter    .  88 

XVI    Peter  Rabbit's  Looking-Glass  .        .  94 

XVII    Peter  Meets  Miss  Fuzzytail  .        .  101 


vm 


CONTENTS 


CHAPTER  PAQB 

XVIII    Tommy  Tit  Proves  a  Friend  Indeed  107 

XIX    Old  Man  Coyote  Pays  a  Debt       .  113 
XX    Little  Miss  Fuzzytail  Whispers 

"Yes" 120 

XXI    Peter  and  Little  Miss  Fuzzytail 

Leave  the  Old  Pasture       .        .  127 

XXII    Sammy  Jay  Becomes  Curious  .        .  134 

XXIII  Peter  Introduces  Mrs.  Peter        .  140 

XXIV  Danny     Meadow     Mouse     Warns 

Peter  Rabbit         ....  147 

XXV    Peter  Rabbit's  Heedlessness         .  153 

XXVI    Peter  Rabbit  Listens  to  Mrs.  Peter  159 
XXVII    MiSTAH  Mocker  Plays  a  Joke  on 

Mrs.  Peter 166 

XXVIII    News  from  the  Old  Briar-Patch    .  173 

XXIX    Jimmy  Skunk  Visits  Peter  Rabbit  180 

XXX    Reddy  Fox  Learns  the  Secret      .  186 

XXXI    Blacky  the  Crow  Has  Sharp  Eyes  193 

XXXII    Peter  Rabbit's  Nursery  .        .  199 


LIST   OF   ILLUSTRATIONS 

Eveiy  one  who  could  walk,  creep,  or 
fly  headed  for  the  Old  Briar- 
patch    Frontispiece 

"I  believe  I'm  just  lonesome/'  said 

Peter page      7 

He  dodged  and  jumped,  and  all  the 

time  the  shadow  followed  him      .       ^'        25 

Peter  stared  and  stared  at  the  tracks 

in  the  soft  mud     .         .        .        .       "        43 

"Those    eyes    belong   to    little    Miss 

FuzzytaH"  .        ..."       74 

That  night  Old  Man  Coyote  started 

for  the  Old  Pasture       ..."      115 

"Oh,  you  dear  old  stupid!"  replied 

little  Mrs.  Peter  .        ..."      164 

"The  quickest  way  for  me  to  know 
is  for  you  to  tell  me,"  replied 
Jimmy "181 


H  A-R.  U  1  S  "N 


Every    one    who    could    walk,    creep,    or    fly 

HEADED  FOR  THE  OlD  BrIAR-PATCH. 

Frontispiece.     See  Page  143. 


MRS.    PETER    RABBIT 
CHAPTER  I 

PETER  RABBIT  LOSES  HIS  APPETITE 

Good  appetite,  you'll  always  find, 
Depends  upon  your  state  of  mind. 

Peter  Rabbit, 

Peter  Rabbit  had  lost  liis  ap- 
petite. Now  when  Peter  Rabbit 
loses  his  appetite,  something  is 
very  wrong  indeed  with  him. 
Peter  has  boasted  that  he  can 
eat  any  time  and  all  the  time. 
In  fact,  the  two  things  that  Peter 
thinks  most  about  are  his  stomach 
and  satisfying  his  curiosity,  and 
nearly    all     of    the     scrapes     that 


g  MRS.   PETER  RABBIT 

Peter  has  gotten  into  have  been 
because  of  those  two  things.  So 
when  Peter  loses  his  appetite  or 
his  curiosity,  there  is  surely  some- 
thing the  matter  with  him. 

Ever  since  Old  Man  Coyote 
had  come  to  live  on  the  Green 
Meadows,  Peter  had  been  afraid 
to  go  very  far  from  the  dear  Old 
Briar-patch  where  he  makes  his 
home,  and  where  he  always  feels 
safe.  Now  there  wasn^t  any  rea- 
son wlij  he  should  go  far  from 
the  dear  Old  Briar-patch.  There 
was  plenty  to  eat  in  it  and  all 
around  it,  for  sweet  clover  grew 
almost  up  to  the  very  edge  of  it, 
and  you  know  Peter  is  very  fond 
of  sweet  clover.  So  there  was 
plenty  for    Peter    to    eat    without 


PETER  LOSES  HIS  APPETITE      3 

running  any  risk  of  danger. 
With  nothing  to  do  but  eat  and 
sleep,  Peter  should  have  grown 
fat  and  contented.  But  he  didn't. 
Now  that  is  just  the  way  with 
a  lot  of  people.  The  more  they 
have  and  the  less  they  have  to 
worry  about,  the  more  discon- 
tented they  become,  and  at  last 
they  are  positively  unhappy. 
There  was  little  Danny  Meadow 
Mouse,  living  out  on  the  Green 
Meadows;  he  was  happy  all  the 
livelong  day,  and  yet  he  had 
no  safe  castle  like  the  dear  Old 
Briar-patch  where  he  could  al- 
ways be  safe.  Every  minute  of 
every  day  Danny  had  to  keep  his 
eyes  wide  open  and  his  wits  work- 
ing   their  very    quickest,   for    any 


4  MRS.  PETER  RABBIT 

minute  he  was  likely  to  be  in 
danger.  '  Old  Man  Coyote  or 
Reddy  Fox  or  Granny  Fox  or 
Digger  the  Badger  or  Mr.  Black- 
snake  was  likely  to  come  creep- 
ing through  the  grass  any  time, 
and  they  are  always  hungry  for 
a  fat  Meadow  Mouse.  And  as  if 
that  weren^t  worry  enough,  Danny 
had  to  watch  the  sky,  too,  for 
Old  Whitetail  the  Marsh  Hawk, 
or  his  cousin  Redtail,  or  Blacky 
the  Crow,  each  of  whom  would 
be  glad  of  a  Meadow  Mouse  din- 
ner. Yet  in  spite  of  all  this, 
Danny  was  happy  and  never  once 
lost  his  appetite. 

But  Peter  Rabbit,  with  noth- 
ing to  worry  him  so  long  as  he 
stayed    in    the     Old    Briar-patch, 


PETER  LOSES  HIS  APPETITE      5 

couldn't  eat  and  grew  more  and 
more  unhappy. 

''  I  don't  know  what's  the  mat- 
ter with  me.  I  really  don't  know 
what's  the  matter  with  me,"  said 
Peter,  as  he  turned  up  his  nose 
at  a  patch  of  sweet,  tender  young 
clover.  "  I  think  I'll  go  and  cut 
some  new  paths  through  the  Old 
Briar-patch." 

Now,  though  he  didn't  know 
it,  that  was  the  very  best  thing 
he  could  do.  It  gave  him  some- 
thing to  think  about.  For  two 
or  three  days  he  was  very  busy 
cutting  new  paths,  and  his  ap- 
petite came  back.  But  when 
he  had  made  all  the  paths  he 
wanted,  and  there  was  nothing 
else    to    do,  he    lost    his    appetite 


6  MRS.  PETER  RABBIT 

again.  He  just  sat  still  all  day 
long  and  moped  and  thought 
and  thought  and  thought.  The 
trouble  with  Peter  Rabbit's  think- 
ing was  that  it  was  all  about 
himself  and  how  unhappy  he  was. 
Of  course,  the  more  he  thought 
about  this,  the  more  unhappy  he 
grew. 

'^  If  I  only  had  some  one  to 
talk  to,  rd  feel  better/'  said  he 
to  himself.  That  reminded  him 
of  Johnny  Chuck  and  what  good 
times  they  used  to  have  together 
when  Johnny  lived  on  the  Green 
Meadows.  Then  he  thought  of 
how  happy  Johnny  seemed  with 
his  little  family  in  his  new  home 
in  the  Old  Orchard,  in  spite  of  all 
the  worries  his  family  made  him. 


I  BELIEVE  I'm  just  lonesome/'  said  Peter. 

Page  7. 


PETER  LOSES  HIS  APPETITE      7 

And   right   then  Peter   found   out 
what  was  the  matter  with  him. 

"I  believe  Tm  just  lonesome/^ 
said  Peter.  "  Yes,  Sir,  that's 
what's  the  matter  with  me. 

"It  isn't  good  to  be  alone, 

I've  often  heard  my  mother  say. 
It  makes  one  selfish,  grouchy,  cross, 

And  quite  unhappy  all  the  day. 
One  needs  to  think  of  other  folks, 

And  not  of  just  one's  self  alone. 
To  find  the  truest  happiness. 

And  joy  and  real  content  to  own. 

^'  Now  that  Tve  found  out 
what  is  the  trouble  with  me,  the 
question  is,  what  am  I  going  to 
do  about  it  ?  '^ 


CHAPTER  n 

PETER  RABBIT  PLANS  A  JOURNEY 

It's  a  long  jump  that  makes  no  landing. 

Peter  Rabbit, 

^'  The  trouble  with  me  is  that 
Tm  lonesome/'  repeated  Peter 
Rabbit  as  he  sat  in  the  dear  Old 
Briar-patch.  '^Yes,  Sir,  that's 
the  only  thing  that's  wrong  with 
me.  I'm  just  tired  of  myself, 
and  that's  why  I've  lost  my  ap- 
petite. And  now  I  know  what's 
the  matter,  what  am  I  going  to 
do  about  it?  If  I  were  sure,  ab- 
solutely sure,  that  Old  Man  Coy- 
ote meant  what  he  said  about  our 
being    friends,   I'd    start    out    this 


PETER  PLANS  A  JOURNEY        9 

very  minute  to  call  on  all  my  old 
friends.  My,  my,  my,  it  seems 
an  age  since  I  visited  the  Smiling 
Pool  and  saw  Grandfather  Frog 
and  Jerry  Muskrat  and  Billy 
Mink  and  Little  Joe  Otter!  Mr. 
Coyote  sounded  as  if  he  really 
meant  to  leave  me  alone,  but, 
but  —  well,  perhaps  he  did  mean 
it  when  he  saw  me  sitting  here 
safe  among  the  brambles,  but  if 
I  should  meet  him  out  in  the 
open,  he  might  change  his  mind 
and  —  oh,  dear,  his  teeth  are  ter- 
rible long  and  sharp  !  ^^ 

Peter  sat  a  little  longer,  think- 
ing and  thinking.  Then  a  bright 
idea  popped  into  his  head.  He 
kicked  up  his  heels. 

^aai  do  it/^  said  he.    ^aii 


10  MRS.   PETER  RABBIT 

make  a  journey !  That's  what 
rU  do !  ril  make  a  journey  and 
see  the  Great  World. 

"By  staying  here  and  sitting  still 
I'm  sure  I'll  simply  grow  quite  ill. 
A  change  of  scene  is  what  I  need 
To  be  from  all  my  trouble  freed." 

Of  course  if  Peter  had  really 
stopped  to  think  the  matter  over 
thoroughly  he  would  have  known 
that  running  away  from  one  kind 
of  trouble  is  almost  sure  to  lead 
to  other  troubles.  But  Peter  is 
one  of  those  who  does  his  think- 
ing afterward.  Peter  is  what  is 
called  impulsive.  That  is,  he 
does  things  and  then  thinks  about 
them  later,  and  often  wishes  he 
hadn't  done  them.  So  now  the 
minute    the    idea    of    making    a 


PETER  PLANS  A  JOURNEY       11 

journey  popped  into  his  head,  he 
made  up  his  mind  that  he  would 
do  it,  and  that  was  all  there  was 
to  it.  You  see,  Peter  never  looks 
ahead.  If  he  could  get  rid  of 
the  trouble  that  bothered  him 
now,  which,  you  know,  was  noth- 
ing but  lonesomeness,  he  wouldn't 
worry  about  the  troubles  he  might 
get  into  later. 

Now  the  minute  Peter  made  up 
his  mind  to  make  a  journey,  he 
began  to  feel  better.  His  lost 
appetite  returned,  and  the  first 
thing  he  did  was  to  eat  a  good 
meal  of  sweet  clover. 

''  Let  me  see,''  said  he,  as  he 
filled  his  big  stomach,  '^  I  believe 
rU  visit  the  Old  Pasture.  It's 
a    long    way    off   and    I've    never 


U  MRS.  PETER  RABBIT 

been  there,  but  Tve  heard  Sammy 
Jay  say  that  it's  a  very  wonder- 
ful place,  and  I  don't  believe  it 
is  any  more  dangerous  than  the 
Green  Meadows  and  the  Grreen 
Forest,  now  that  Old  Man  Coy- 
ote and  Reddy  and  Granny  Fox 
are  all  living  here.  TU  start  to- 
night when  I  am  sure  that  Old 
Man  Coyote  is  nowhere  around, 
and  I  won  t  tell  a  soul  where  I 
am  going/' 

So  Peter  settled  himself  and 
tried  to  sleep  the  long  day  away, 
but  his  mind  was  so  full  of  the 
long  journey  he  was  going  to 
make  that  he  couldn't  sleep  much, 
and  when  he  did  have  a  nap,  he 
dreamed  of  wonderful  sights  and 
adventures  out  in  the  Great  World. 


PETER  PLANS  A  JOURNEY      13 

At  last  he  saw  jolly,  round,  red 
Mr.  Sun  drop  down  to  his  bed 
behind  the  Purple  Hills.  Old 
Mother  West  Wind  came  hurry- 
ing back  from  her  day^s  work 
and  gathered  her  children,  the 
Merry  Little  Breezes,  into  her  big 
bag,  and  then  she,  too,  started 
for  her  home  behind  the  Purple 
Hills.  A  little  star  came  out 
and  winked  at  Peter,  and  then 
way  over  on  the  edge  of  the  Green 
Forest  he  heard  Old  Man  Coyote 
laugh.  Peter  grinned.  That  was 
what  he  had  been  waiting  for, 
since  it  meant  that  Old  Man  Coy- 
ote was  so  far  away  that  there 
was  nothing  to  fear  from  him. 

Peter  hopped  out  from  the  dear, 
safe  Old  Briar-patch,  looked    this 


14  MRS.  PETER  RABBIT 

way  and  that  way,  and  tlien,  with 
his  heart  in  his  mouth,  started 
towards  the  Old  Pasture  as  fast 
as  he  could  go,  lipperty  —  lip- 
perty  —  lip. 


CHAPTER   in 

HOOTY  THE  OWL  CHANGES  HIS  HUNT- 
ING  GROUNDS 

A  full  stomach  makes  a  pleasant  day ; 

An  empty  stomach  turns  the  whole  world 

gray. 

Peter  Rabbit, 

HooTY  THE  Owl  sat  on  the  tip- 
top of  a  tall  dead  tree  in  the 
Grreen  Forest  while  the  Black 
Shadows  crept  swiftly  among  the 
trees.  He  was  talking  to  him- 
self. It  wouldn't  have  done  for 
him  to  have  spoken  aloud  what  he 
was  saying  to  himself,  for  then  the 
little  people  in  feathers  and  fm*  on 
whom  he  likes  to  make  his  dinner 
would  have  heard  him  and  known 


16  MRS.  PETER  RABBIT 

just  where  he  was.  So  he  said  it 
to  himself,  and  sat  so  still  that  he 
looked  for  all  the  world  like  a  part 
of  the  tree  on  which  he  was  sitting. 
What  he  was  saying  was  this : 

**Towhit,  towhoo !    To  whit,  towhoo  ! 

»,,  Will  some  one  tell  me  what  to  do  ? 
My  children  have  an  appetite 
That  keeps  me  hunting  all  the  night, 
And  though  their  stomachs  I  may  stuflF 
They  never  seem  to  have  enough. 
Towhit,  towhoo  !     Towhit,  towhoo  ! 
Will  some  one  tell  me  what  to  do?" 

When  it  was  dark  enough  he 
gave  his  fierce  hunting  call  — 
''  Whooo-hoo-hoo,   whoo-hoo  !  '^ 

Now  that  is  a  terrible  sound  in 
the  dark  woods,  very  terrible  indeed 
to  the  little  forest  people,  because 
it  sounds  so  fierce  and  hungry. 
It    makes  them  jump   and    shiver, 


THE  OWL  CHANGES  GROUNDS  17 

and  that  is  just  what  Hooty  wants 
them  to  do,  for  in  doing  it  one  of 
them  is  likely  to  make  just  the 
least  scratching  with  his  claws,  or 
to  rustle  a  leaf.  If  he  does,  Hooty, 
whose  ears  are  very,  very  wonder- 
ful, is  almost  sure  to  hear,  and  with 
his  great  yellow  eyes  see  him,  and 
then  —  Hooty  has  his  dinner. 

The  very  night  when  Peter 
Rabbit  started  on  his  journey  to 
the  Old  Pasture,  Hooty  the  Owl 
had  made  up  his  mind  that  some- 
thing had  got  to  be  done  to  get 
more  food  for  those  hungry  babies 
of  his  up  in  the  big  hemlock-tree 
in  the  darkest  corner  of  the  Green 
Forest.  Hunting  was  very  poor, 
very  poor  indeed,  and  Hooty  was  at 
his   wits'    end    to    know    what    he 


18  MRS.   PETER  RABBIT 

should  do.  He  had  hooted  and 
hooted  in  vain  in  the  Green  Forest, 
and  he  had  sailed  back  and  forth 
over  the  Green  Meadows  like  a 
great  black  shadow  without  seeing 
so  much  as  a  single  Mouse. 

^^It^s  all  because  of  Old  Man  Coy- 
ote and  Granny  and  Reddy  Fox/' 
said  Hooty  angrily.  ''They've 
spoiled  the  hunting.  Yes,  Sir, 
thaf  s  just  what  they  have  done ! 
If  I  expect  to  feed  those  hungry 
babies  of  mine,  I  must  find  new 
hunting  grounds.  I  believe  Til  go 
up  to  the  Old  Pasture.  Perhaps 
rU  have  better  luck  up  there.'' 

So  Hooty  the  Owl  spread  his 
broad  wings  and  started  for  the 
Old  Pasture  just  a  little  while  after 
Peter  Rabbit    had  started  for  the 


THE  OWL  CHANGES  GROUNDS  19 

same  place.  Of  course  he  didn^t 
know  that  Peter  was  on  his  way 
there,  and  of  course  Peter  didn^t 
know  that  Hooty  even  thought  of 
the  Old  Pasture.  K  he  had, 
perhaps  he  would  have  thought 
twice  before  starting.  Anyway, 
he  would  have  kept  a  sharper 
watch  on  the  sky.  But  as  it  was 
his  thoughts  were  all  of  Old  Man 
Coyote  and  Grranny  Fox,  and  that 
is  where  Peter  made  a  very  grave 
mistake,  a  very  grave  mistake  in- 
deed, as  he  was  soon  to  find  out. 


CHAPTER  IV 

THE  SHADOW  WITH  SHARP  CLAWS 

Now  what's  the  use,  pray  tell  me  this, 

When  all  is  said  and  done ; 
A  thousand  things  and  one  to  learn 

And  then  forget  the  one  ? 
For  when  that  one  alone  you  need, 

And  nothing  else  will  do, 
What  good  are  all  the  thousand  then  ? 

I  do  not  see ;  do  you  ? 

Pster  Rabbit 

FoEGETTiNG  leads  to  more  trouble 
than  almost  anything  under  the 
sun.  Peter  Rabbit  knew  this.  Of 
course  he  knew  it.  Peter  had  had 
many  a  narrow  escape  just  from 
forgetting  something.  He  knew 
just  as  well  as  you  know  that  he 
might  just  as  well  not  learn  a  thing 


SHADOW  WITH  SHARP  CLAWS    21 

as  to  learn  it  and  then  forget  it. 
But  Peter  is  such  a  happy-go-lucky 
little  fellow  that  he  is  very  apt  to 
forget,  and  forgetting  leads  him 
into  all  kinds  of  difficulties,  just  as 
it  does  most  folks. 

Now  Peter  had  learned  when 
he  was  a  very  little  fellow  that 
when  he  went  out  at  night,  he  must 
watch  out  quite  as  sharply  for 
Hooty  the  Owl  as  for  either 
Granny  or  Reddy  Fox,  and  usu- 
ally he  did.  But  the  night  he 
started  to  make  a  journey  to  the 
Old  Pasture,  his  mind  was  so  full 
of  Old  Man  Coyote  and  Granny 
and  Reddy  Fox  that  he  wholly 
forgot  Hooty  the  Owl.  So,  as 
he  scamipered  across  the  Green 
Meadows,      lipperty  —  lipperty  — 


22  MRS.   PETER  RABBIT 

lip,  as  fast  as  lie  could  go,  witli 
his  long  ears  and  his  big  eyes  and 
his  wobbly  nose  all  watching  out 
for  danger  on  the  ground,  not 
once  did  he  think  that  there  might 
be  danger  from  the  sky  above 
him. 

It  was  a  moonlight  night,  and 
Peter  was  sharp  enough  to  keep 
in  the  shadows  whenever  he  could. 
He  would  scamper  as  fast  as  he 
knew  how  from  one  shadow  to 
another  and  then  sit  down  in  the 
blackest  part  of  each  shadow  to 
get  his  breath,  and  to  look  and 
listen  and  so  make  sure  that  no 
one  was  following  him.  The 
nearer  he  got  to  the  Old  Pasture^ 
the  safer  he  felt  from  Old  Man 
Coyote    and     Granny    and    Reddy 


SHADOW  WITH   SHARP   CLAWS    23 

Fox.  When  he  scampered  across 
the  patches  of  moonshine  his  heart 
didn't  come  up  in  his  mouth  the 
way  it  had  at  first.  He  grew 
bolder  and  bolder.  Once  or  twice 
he  stopped  for  a  mouthful  of 
sweet  clover.  He  was  tired,  for 
he  had  come  a  long  way,  but  he 
was  almost  to  the  Old  Pasture 
now,  and  it  looked  very  dark  and 
safe,  for  it  was  covered  with 
bushes  and  brambles. 

"  Plenty  of  hiding  places  there,'^ 
thought  Peter.  ^^It  really  looks 
as  safe  as  the  dear  Old  Briar-patch. 
No  one  will  ever  think  to  look 
for  me  way  off*  here.'' 

Just  then  he  spied  a  patch  of 
sweet  clover  out  in  the  moonlight. 
His  mouth  began  to  water.      ^^  Til 


£4  MRS.   PETER  RABBIT 

just  fill  my  stomach  before  I  go 
into  the  Old  Pasture,  for  there 
may  not  be  any  clover  there/^  said 
Peter. 

^^  You'd  better  be  careful,  Peter 
Rabbit/'  said  a  wee  warning  voice 
inside  him. 

"  Pooh  ! ''  said  Peter.  "  There's 
nothing  to  be  afraid  of  way  up 
here  ! '' 

A  shadow  drifted  across  the 
sweet  clover  patch.  Peter  saw  it. 
"  That  must  be  made  by  a  cloud 
crossing  the  moon/'  said  Peter, 
and  he  was  so  sure  of  it  that  he 
didn't  even  look  up  to  see,  but 
boldly  hopped  out  to  fill  his 
stomach.  Just  as  he  reached  the 
patch  of  clover,  the  shadow  drifted 
over  it  again.      Then  all  in  a  flash 


He  dodged  and  jumped,  and  all  the  time  the 

SHADOW  FOLLOWED  HIM.       Page  25. 


SHADOW  WITH  SHARP   CLAWS    25 

a  terrible  tlioufflit  entered  Peter's 
head.  He  didn't  stop  to  look  up. 
He  suddenly  sprang  sideways,  and 
even  as  he  did  so,  sharp  claws 
tore  his  coat  and  hurt  him  dread- 
fully. He  twisted  and  dodged 
and  jumped  and  turned  this  way 
and  that  way,  and  all  the  time 
the  shadow  followed  him.  Once 
again  sharp  claws  tore  his  coat 
and  made   him    squeal  with    pain. 

At  last,  when  his  breath  was 
almost  gone,  he  reached  the  edge 
of  the  Old  Pasture  and  dived 
under  a  friendly  old  bramble-bush. 

"  Oh,''  sobbed  Peter,  "  I  forgot 
all  about  Hooty  the  Owl !  Be- 
sides, I  didn't  suppose  he  ever 
came  way  up  here." 


CHAPTER   Y 

IN  THE  OLD  PASTURE 

Brambles  never  scratch  those  who  under- 
stand and  are  considerate  of  them. 

Peter  Rabbit 

Petee  Rabbit  sat  under  a 
friendly  bramble-bush  on  the  edge 
of  the  Old  Pasture  and  panted  for 
breath,  while  his  heart  went  pit-a- 
pat,  pit-a-pat,  as  if  it  woidd  thump 
its  way  right  through  his  sides. 
Peter  had  had  a  terrible  fright. 
There  were  long  tears  in  his  coat, 
and  he  smarted  and  ached  dread- 
fully where  the  cruel  claws  of 
Hooty  the  Owl  had  torn  him. 
And  there  he  was  in  a  strange 
place,   not  knowing  which  way  to 


IN  THE  OLD   PASTURE  27 

turn,  for  you  know  he  never  had 
visited  the  Old  Pasture  before. 

But  Peter  had  had  so  many 
narrow  escapes  in  his  life  that  he 
had  learned  not  to  worry  over 
dangers  that  are  past.  Peter  is 
what  wise  men  call  a  phi-los-o- 
pher.  That  is  a  big  word,  but  its 
meaning  is  very  simple.  A  phi- 
losopher is  one  who  believes  that 
it  is  foolish  to  think  about  things 
that  have  happened,  except  to 
learn  some  lesson  from  them,  and 
that  the  best  thing  to  do  is  to 
make  the  most  of  the  present. 
Peter  had  learned  his  lesson.  He 
was  sure  of  that. 

'^  I  never,  never  will  forget  again 
to  watch  out  for  Hooty  the  Owl,'^ 
said   he   to   himself,   as   he   nursed 


28  MRS.   PETER  RABBIT 

his  wounds,  '^  and  so  perhaps  it  is 
a  good  thing  that  he  so  nearly 
caught  me  this  time.  If  he  hadn't, 
I  might  have  forgotten  all  about 
him  some  time  when  he  could  catch 
me.  I  certainly  wouldn't  have 
watched  out  for  him  way  up  here, 
for  I  didn't  think  he  ever  came 
up  to  the  Old  Pasture.  But  now 
I  know  he  does,  Mr.  Hooty'U  have 
to  be  smarter  than  he's  ever  been 
before  to  catch  me  napping  again. 
My,  how  I  do  smart  and  ache !  I 
know  now  just  hoAv  Danny  Meadow 
Mouse  felt  that  time  Hooty  caught 
him  and  dropped  him  into  the  Old 
Briar-patch.  Ouch  !  Well,  as  my 
mother  used  to  say : 

'Yesterday  has  gone  away ; 
Make  the  most  of  just  to-day.' 


IN  THE   OLD   PASTURE  29 

Here  I  am  up  In  tlie  Old  Pasture, 
and  the  question  is,  Avhat  shall  I 
do  next  ?'' 

Peter  felt  a  queer  little  thrill  as 
he  peeped  out  from  under  the 
friendly       bramble-bush.  Very 

strange  and  wonderful  it  seemed. 
Of  course  he  couldn't  see  very  far, 
because  the  Old  Pasture  was  all 
overgrown  with  bushes  and  briars, 
and  they  made  the  very  blackest 
of  black  shadows  in  the  moonlight. 
Peter  wondered  what  dangers  might 
be  awaiting  him  there,  but  some- 
how he  didn't  feel  much  afraid. 
No,  Sir,  he  didn't  feel  much  afraid. 
You  see  those  briars  looked  2:ood 
to  him,  for  briars  are  always 
friendly  to  Peter  and  unfriendly  to 
those  who  would  do  harm  to  Peter. 


30  MRS.   PETER  RABBIT 

So    when    lie    saw    them,    he    felt 
almost  at  home. 

Peter  drew  a  long  breath. 
Then  he  cried  ^^Ouch! ''  You  see, 
he  had  forgotten  for  a  minute  how 
sore  he  was.  He  was  eao;er  to 
explore  this  new  wonderland,  for 
Sammy  Jay  had  told  him  wonder- 
ful tales  about  it,  and  he  knew 
that  here  old  Granny  Fox  and 
Reddy  Fox  had  found  safety  when 
Farmer  Brown's  boy  had  hunted 
for  them  so  hard  on  the  Green 
Meadows  and  in  the  Green  Forest. 
He  felt  sure  that  there  must  be  the 
most  splendid  hiding-places,  and  it 
seemed  as  if  he  certainly  must  start 
right  out  to  see  them,  for  you  know 
Peter  is  very,  very  curious.  But 
the    first    move    he    made  brought 


IN  THE  OLD  PASTURE  31 

another  "  Ouch  ^'  from  him,  and 
he  made   up   a  wry  face. 

"  I  guess  the  best  thing  for  me 
to  do  is  to  stay  right  where  I  am/^ 
said  he,  "  for  here  I  am  safe  under 
this  friendly  old  bramble/^ 

So  with  a  sigh  Peter  settled 
down  to  make  himself  as  comfort- 
able as  he  could,  and  once,  as  far, 
far  away  on  the  Green  Meadows  he 
heard  the  voice  of  Old  Man  Coyote, 
Peter  even  smiled. 

"  I  haven't  anything  to  fear  from 
him,  anyway,  for  hell  never  think 
of  coming  way  up  here,''  said  he. 


CHAPTER   YI 

PETER  RABBIT  IS  STILL  LONESOME 

A  sympathetic  word  or  two 

A  wond'rous  help  is,  when  you're  blue. 

So  pity  him  who  sits  alone 

His  aches  and  troubles  to  bemoan. 

Peter  Rabbit. 

All  the  rest  of  that  night  Peter 
sat  under  a  friendly  old  bramble- 
bush  on  the  edge  of  the  Old  Pas- 
ture  and  nursed  the  sore  places 
made  by  the  claws  of  Hooty  the 
Owl.  At  last  jolly,  round,  red 
Mr.  Sun  began  to  climb  up  in 
the  blue,  blue  sky,  just  as  he  does 
every  day.  Peter  looked  up  at 
him,  and  he  felt  sure  that  Mr. 
Sun  winked  at  him.      Somehow  it 


PETER  IS  STILL  LONESOME     33 

made  him  feel  better.  The  fact 
is,  Peter  was  beginning  to  feel 
just  a  wee,  wee  bit  homesick.  It 
is  bad  enough  to  be  in  a  strange 
place  alone,  but  to  be  sore  and 
to  smart  and  ache  as  Peter  did 
makes  that  lonesome  feelino;  a 
whole  lot  harder  to  bear.  It  is 
dreadful  not  to  have  any  one  to 
speak  to,  but  to  look  around  and 
not  see  a  single  thing  you  have 
ever  seen  before,  —  my,  my,  my,  it 
certainly  does  give  you  a  strange, 
sinking  feeling  way  down  inside ! 
Before  that  long  night  was 
over  Peter  felt  as  if  his  heart  had 
gone  way  down  to  his  very  toes. 
Yes,  Sii',  that's  the  way  he  felt. 
Every  time  he  moved  at  all  he 
cried    ''  Ouch  ! ''       He    just    knew 


34  MRS.   PETER  RABBIT 

that  he  was  growing  more  stiff 
and  sore  every  minute.  Then  he 
began  to  wonder  what  he  should 
do  for  something  to  eat,  for  he 
was  in  a  strange  place,  you  re- 
member. And  that  made  him 
think  of  all  his  private  little 
paths  through  the  dear  Old  Briar- 
patch,  the  little  paths  he  had 
made  all  himself,  and  which  no 
one  used  but  himself,  excepting 
Danny  Meadow  Mouse  when  he  ' 
came  for  a  visit. 

''  Perhaps  I  shall    never,  never 
see    them    again/^    moaned    Peter,  | 
and  two  big  tears  filled    his   eyes 
and  were  just  ready  to  drop. 

At  that  moment  he  looked  up 
and  saw  jolly,  round,  red  Mr. 
Sun  wink.     Peter    tried    to   wink  m 


PETER  IS  STILL  LONESOME     35 

back,  and  tliat  made  tlie  two  tears 
fall.  But  there  were  no  more 
tears  to  follow.  You  see  that 
wink  had  made  all  the  difference 
in  the  world.  Peter's  heart  had 
jumped  right  back  where  it  be- 
longed. Mr.  Sun  was  one  of  his 
oldest  friends  and  you  know 

When  trouble  comes,  a  friendly  face 
Makes  bright  the  very  darkest  place. 

And  so,  just  as  he  made  bright 
all  the  Old  Pasture,  Mr.  Sun  also 
made  bright  the  dark  little  corners 
in  Peter's  heart  just  because  he 
was  an  old  friend.  To  be  sure 
Peter  was  still  lonesome,  but  it 
was  a  different  kind  of  lonesome- 
ness.  He  hadn't  anybody  to  talk 
to,  which  is  always  a  dreadful 
thing    to    Peter,  but  he  had  only 


36  MRS.   PETER  RABBIT 

to  look  up  to  catch  a  friendly 
wink,  and  somehow  that  not  only 
made  him  feel  better  inside  but  it 
seemed  to  make  his  aches  and 
smarts  better  too. 


CHAPTER   YII 

PETER  FINDS  TRACKS 

Every  day  is  different  from  every  other  day, 

And  always  there  is  something  new   to   see 

along  the  way. 

Peter  Rabbit. 

Peter  Rabbit  had  sat  still 
just  as  long  as  he  could.  He  was 
stiff  and  lame  and  sore  from  the 
wounds  made  by  Hooty  the  Owl, 
but  his  curiosity  wouldn't  let  him 
sit  still  a  minute  longer.  He  just 
had  to  explore  the  Old  Pasture. 
So  with  many  a  wry  face  and 
many  an  ''  Ouch ''  he  limped  out 
from  the  shelter  of  the  friendly 
old  bramble-bush  and  started   out 


38  MRS.   PETER  RABBIT 

to  see  what  the  Old  Pasture  was 
like. 

Now  Hooty  the  Owl  had  taught 
Peter  wisdom.  With  his  torn 
clothes  and  his  aches  and  smarts 
he  couldn^t  very  well  forget  to 
be  careful.  First  he  made  sure 
that  there  was  no  danger  near, 
and  this  time  he  took  pains  to 
look  all  around  in  the  sky  as 
well  as  on  the  ground.  Then  he 
limped  out  to  the  very  patch  of 
sweet  clover  where  Hooty  had  so 
nearly  caught  him  the  night  be- 
fore. 

''  A  good  breakfast/^  said  Peter, 
"  will  make  a  new  Rabbit  of  me.'^ 
You  know  Peter  thinks  a  great 
deal  of  his  stomach.  So  he  be- 
gan   to    eat  as    fast  as    he  could, 


PETER  FINDS  TRACKS  39 

stopping  every  other  moutliful  to 
look  and  listen.  "  I  know  it's  a 
bad  habit  to  eat  fast/'  said  he, 
^^but  It's  a  whole  lot  worse  to 
have  an  empty  stomach."  So  he 
ate  and  ate  and  ate  as  fast  as 
he  could  make  his  little  jaws  go, 
wdiich  is  very  fast  indeed. 

When  Peter's  stomach  was 
stuffed  full  he  o;ave  a  great  sigh 
of  relief  and  limped  back  to  the 
friendly  old  bramble-bush  to  rest. 
But  he  couldn't  sit  still  long,  for 
he  just  had  to  find  out  all  about 
the  Old  Pasture.  So  pretty  soon 
he  started  out  to  explore.  Such 
a  wonderful  place  as  it  seemed  to 
Peter !  There  were  clumps  of 
bushes  with  little  open  spaces  be- 
tween,   just     the     nicest    kind    of 


40  MRS.   PETER  RABBIT 

playgrounds.  Then  there  were 
funny  spreading,  prickly  juniper- 
trees,  which  made  the  very  safest 
places  to  crawl  out  of  harm's  way 
and  to  hide.  Everywhere  were 
paths  made  by  cows.  Very  won- 
derful they  seemed  to  Peter,  who 
had  never  seen  any  like  them  be- 
fore. He  liked  to  follow  them 
because  they  led  to  all  kinds  of 
queer  places. 

Sometimes  he  would  come  to 
places  where  tall  trees  made  him 
think  of  the  Green  Forest,  only 
there  were  never  more  than  a  few 
trees  together.  Once  he  found  an 
old  tumble-down  stone  wall  all 
covered  with  vines,  and  he  shouted 
right  out  with  delight. 

^^  It's  a   regular    castle  ! ''    cried 


PETER  FINDS  TRACKS  41 

Peter,  and  he  knew  that  there  he 
would  be  safe  from  every  one  but 
Shadow  the  Weasel.  But  he 
never  was  wholly  safe  from 
Shadow  the  Weasel  anywhere,  so 
he  didn't  let  that  thought  worry 
him.  By  and  by  he  came  to  a 
wet  place  called  a  swamp.  The 
ground  was  soft,  and  there  were 
little  pools  of  water.  Great  ferns 
grew  here  just  as  they  did  along 
the  bank  of  the  Laughing  Brook, 
only  more  of  them.  There  were 
pretty  birch-trees  and  wild  cherry- 
trees.  It  was  still  and  dark  and 
oh,  so  peaceful !  Peter  liked  that 
place  and  sat  down  under  a  big 
fern  to  rest.  He  didn't  hear  a 
sound  excepting  the  beautiful  sil- 
very voice  of   Veery  the    Thrush. 


42  MRS.  PETER  RABBIT 

Listening  to  it,  Peter  fell  asleep, 
for  he  was  very  tired. 

By  and  by  Peter  awoke.  For 
a  minute  he  couldn't  think  where 
he  was.  Then  he  remembered. 
But  for  a  long  time  he  sat  per- 
fectly still,  thinking  of  his  adven- 
tures and  wondering  if  he  would 
be  missed  down  on  the  Green 
Meadows.  Then  all  of  a  sudden 
Peter  saw  something  that  made 
him  sit  up  so  suddenly  that  he 
cried  ''  Ouch ! ''  for  he  had  for- 
gotten all  about  how  stiff  and 
sore  he  was. 

What  do  you  think  Peter  saw  ? 
Tracks !  Yes,  Sir,  he  saw  tracks, 
Rabbit  tracks  in  the  soft  mud, 
and  Peter  knew  that  he  hadn't 
made  them ! 


Peter  stared  and  stared  at  the  tracks  ix  the 
SOFT  MUD.     Page  43. 


CHAPTER   Vm 

THE    STRANGE    TRACKS    IN    THE    OLD 

PASTURE 

Who  has  attentive  ear  and  eye 
Will  learn  a  lot  if  he  but  try. 

Peter  Rabbit. 

Peter  Rabbit  stared  and  stared 
at  the  tracks  in  the  soft  mud  of 
the  swamp  in  the  Old  Pasture. 
He  would  look  first  at  the  tracks, 
then  at  his  own  feet,  and  finally 
back  at  the  tracks  again.  He 
scratched  his  long  right  ear  with 
his  long  right  hind  foot.  Then  he 
scratched  his  long  left  ear  with 
his  long  left  hind  foot,  all  the 
time  staring  his  hardest  at  those 
strange     tracks.      They     certainly 


44  MRS.   PETER  RABBIT 

were  the  tracks  of  a  Rabbit,  and 
it  was  equally  certain  that  they 
were  not  his  own. 

"  They  are  too  big  for  mine, 
and  they  are  too  small  for  Jumper 
the  Hare's.  Besides,  Jumper  is 
in  the  Green  Forest  and  not  way 
off  up  here,''  said  Peter  to  himself. 
''  I  wonder  —  well,  I  wonder  if 
he   Avill    try  to    drive    me    away.'' 

You  see  Peter  knew  that  if  he 
had  found  a  strange  Rabbit  in  his 
dear  Old  Briar-patch  he  certainly 
w^ould  have  tried  his  best  to  drive 
him  out,  for  he  felt  that  the 
Old  Briar-patch  belonged  to  him. 
Now  he  wondered  if  the  maker 
of  these  tracks  would  feel  the 
same  way  about  the  Old  Pas- 
ture.     Peter    looked     troubled    as 


STRANGE  TRACKS  IN  PASTURE    45 

he  thought  it  over.  Then  his  face 
cleared. 

^^  Perhaps/'  said  he  hopefully, 
^^he  is  a  new  comer  here,  too, 
and  if  he  is,  111  have  just  as 
much  right  here  as  he  has.  Per- 
haps he  simply  has  big  feet  and 
isn't  any  bigger  or  stronger  than  I 
am,  and  if  that's  the  case  I'd  like 
to  see  him  drive  me  out !  " 

Peter  swelled  himself  out  and 
tried  to  look  as  bio;  as  he  could 
when  he  said  this,  but  swellino; 
himself  out  this  way  reminded 
him  of  how  stiff  and  sore  he  was 
from  the  wounds  given  him  by 
Hooty  the  Owl,  and  he  made  a 
wry  face.  You  see  he  realized 
all  of  a  sudden  that  he  didn't  feel 
much  like  fip'htina:. 


46  MRS.   PETER  RABBIT 

''  My/^  said  Peter,  "  I  guess 
rd  better  find  out  all  about  tbis 
other  fellow  before  I  have  any 
trouble  with  him.  The  Old  Pas- 
ture looks  bio;  enouffh  for  a  lot  of 
Rabbits,  and  perhaps  if  I  don't 
bother  him,  he  won't  bother  me. 
I  wonder  what  he  looks  like.  I 
believe  Til  follow  these  tracks  and 
see  what  I  can  find.'' 

So  Peter  began  to  follow  the 
tracks  of  the  strange  Rabbit,  and 
he  was  so  interested  that  he  al- 
most forgot  to  limp.  They  led 
him  this  way  and  they  led  him 
that  way  through  the  swamp  and 
then  out  of  it.  At  the  foot  of  a 
certain  birch-tree    Peter    stopped. 

''  Ha  !  "  said  he,  "  now  I  shall 
know  just  how  big  this  fellow  is." 


STRANGE  TRACKS  IN   PASTURE    47 

How  was  he  to  know  ?  Why, 
that  tree  was  a  kind  of  Rabbit 
measuring-stick.  Yes,  Sir,  that 
is  just  what  it  was.  You  see, 
Rabbits  like  to  keep  a  record  of 
how  they  grow,  just  as  some  little 
boys  and  girls  do,  but  as  they 
have  no  doors  or  walls  to  stand 
against,  they  use  trees.  And  this 
was  the  measuring-tree  of  the 
Rabbit  whose  tracks  Peter  had 
been  following.  Peter  stopped  at 
the  foot  of  it  and  sat  down  to 
think  it  over.  He  knew  what 
that  tree  meant  perfectly  well. 
He  had  one  or  two  measuring- 
trees  of  his  own  on  the  edge  of 
the  Green  Forest.  He  knew,  too, 
that  it  was  more  than  a  mere 
measuring-tree.     It     was     a    kind 


48  MRS.   PETER  RABBIT 

of  ^^no  trespassing^'  sign.  It 
meant  that  some  other  Rabbit 
had  lived  here  for  some  time  and 
felt  that  he  oAvned  this  part  of 
the  Old  Pasture.  Peter's  nose 
told  him  that,  for  the  tree  smelled 
very,  very  strong  of  Rabbit  —  of 
the  Rabbit  with  the  big;  feet. 
This  was  because  whoever  used  it 
for  a  measuring-tree  used  to  rub 
himself  against  it  as  far  up  as  he 
could  reach. 

Peter  hopped  up  close  to  it. 
Then  he  sat  up  very  straight  and 
stretched  himself  as  tall  as  he 
could,  but  he  wisely  took  care 
not  to  rub  against  the  tree.  You 
see,  he  didn't  want  to  leave  his 
own  mark  there.  So  he  stretched 
a-nd  stretched,  but    stretch    as    he 


STRANGE  TRACKS  IN  PASTURE    49 

would,  he  couldn't  make  his  wob- 
bly little  nose  reach  the  mark 
made  by  the  other  Rabbit. 

"  My  sakes,  he  is  a  big  fel- 
low ! ''  exclaimed  Peter.  "  I  ffuess 
I  don't  want  to  meet  him  until  I 
feel  better  and  stronger  than  I 
do  now.^^ 


CHAPTER   IX  I 

AN  UNPLEASANT  SURPRISE 

Legs  are  very  useful  when  you  want  to  run 

away; 
Long,  sharp  teeth  are  splendid  if  to  fight  you 

want  to  stay ; 
But  a  far,  far  greater  blessing,  whether  one 

may  stay  or  quit, 
Is  a  clever,  trusty,  quick  and  ever  ready  wit. 

Peter  Rabbit. 

Peter  Rabbit  sat  in  a  snug 
hiding-place  in  the  Old  Pasture 
and  thouo;ht  over  what  he  had 
found  out  about  the  strange  Rabbit 
whose  tracks  he  had  followed. 
They  had  led  him  to  a  rubbing 
or  measuring-tree,  where  the 
strange  Rabbit  had  placed  his 
mark,  and  that  mark  was  so  high 


AN  UNPLEASANT   SURPRISE      51 

up  on  the  tree  that  Peter  knew  tlie 
strange  Rabbit  must  be  a  great 
deal  biffger  than  himself. 

''  If  he^s  bigger,  of  course  he  is 
stronger/'  thought  Peter,  ''  and  if 
he  is  both  bigger  and  stronger,  of 
course  it  won't  be  the  least  bit  of 
use  for  me  to  fight  him.  Then, 
anyway,  Tm  too  stiff  and  sore  to 
fight.  And  then,  he  has  no  busi- 
ness to  think  he  owns  the  Old 
Pasture,  because  he  doesn't.  I 
have  just  as  much  right  here  as  he 
has.  Yes,  Sir,  I  have  just  as 
much  right  in  this  Old  Pasture  as 
he  has,  and  if  he  thinks  he  can 
drive  me  out  he  is  going  to  find 
that  he  was  never  more  mistaken 
in  his  life  !  Ill  show  him  !  Yes, 
Sir-e-e,    111    show    him !      I   guess 


52  MRS.   PETER  RABBIT 

mj  wits  are  as  sliarp  as  his,  and  I 
wouldn^t  wonder  if  they  are  a  little 
bit  sharper/^ 

Foolish  Peter  Rabbit !  There 
he  was  boasting  and  brao:2;ino;  to 
himself  of  what  he  would  do  to 
some  one  whom  he  hadn't  even 
seen,  all  because  he  had  found  a 
sign  that  told  him  the  Old  Pasture, 
in  which  he  had  made  up  his  mind 
to  make  his  new  home,  was  al- 
ready the  home  of  some  one  else. 
Peter  was  like  a  lot  of  other 
people ;  he  Avasn't  fair.  No,  Sir, 
he  wasn't  fair.  He  let  his  own 
desires  destroy  his  sense  of  fair 
play.  It  was  all  right  for  him  to 
put  up  signs  in  the  dear  Old  Briar- 
patch  and  the  Grreen  Forest,  warn- 
ing  other  Rabbits  that  they  must 


AN  UNPLEASANT  SURPRISE      53 

keep  away,  but  it  was  all  wrong 
for  another  Rabbit  to  do  the  same 
thing  in  the  Old  Pasture.  Oh, 
my,  yes !  That  was  quite  a  dif- 
ferent matter  !  The  very  thought 
of  it  made  Peter  very,  very  angry. 
When  he  thought  of  this  other 
Rabbit,  it  was  always  as  the 
stranger.  That  shows  just  how 
unfair  Peter  was,  because,  you 
see,  Peter  himself  was  really  the 
stranger.  It  was  his  first  visit  to 
the  Old  Pasture,  while  it  was  very 
plain  that  the  other  had  lived  there 
for  some  time. 

But  Peter  couldn't  or  wouldn't 
see  that.  He  had  counted  so  much 
on  having  the  Old  Pasture  to  him- 
self and  doing  as  he  pleased,  that 
he  was  too  upset  and  disappointed 


54  MRS.   PETER  RABBIT 

to  be  fair.  K  tlie  other  Rabbit 
had  been  smaller  than  he  —  well, 
that  might  have  made  a  difference. 
The  truth  is,  Peter  was  just  a 
wee  bit  afraid.  And  perhaps  it 
was  that  wee  bit  of  fear  that  made 
him  unfair  and  unjust.  Anyway, 
the  longer  he  sat  and  thought 
about  it,  the  angrier  he  grew,  and 
the  more  he  bragged  and  boasted 
to  himself  about  what  he  would  do. 

^^rU  just  keep  out  of  sight 
until  my  wounds  are  healed,  and 
then  we'll  see  who  owns  the  Old 
Pasture !  "  thought  Peter. 

No  sooner  had  this  thought 
popped  into  his  head  than  he 
received  a  surprise,  such  an  un- 
pleasant surprise !  It  was  three 
heavy   thumps    right    behind    him. 


AN  UNPLEASANT  SURPRISE      55 

Peter  knew  what  that  meant.  Of 
course  he  knew.  It  meant  that  he 
must  run  or  fight.  It  meant  that 
he  had  been  so  busy  thinking 
about  how  smart  he  was  going  to 
be  that  he  had  forgotten  to  cover 
his  own  tracks,  and  so  the  maker 
of  the  bio;  tracks  he  had  followed 
had  found  him  out. 

Thump  !  Thump  !  Thump  ! 
There  it  w^as  again.  Peter  knew 
by  the  sound  that  it  was  of  no  use 
to  stay  and  fight,  especially  when 
he  was  so  sore  and  stiff.  There 
was  nothing  to  do  but  run  aw^ay. 
He  simply  had  to.  And  that  is 
just  what  he  did  do,  while  his  eyes 
were  filled  with  tears  of  rage  and 
bitterness. 


CHAPTER   X 

PETER    RABBIT    ALMOST    DECIDES    TO 
RETURN  HOME 

I  have  no  doubt  that  you've  been  told 
How  timid  folks  are  sometimes  bold. 

Peter  Rabbit, 

In  all  Ills  life  Peter  Rabbit  had 
never  been  so  disappointed.  Here 
he  was  in  the  Old  Pasture^  about 
which  he  had  dreamed  and  thought 
SO  long,  and  in  reaching  which  he 
had  had  such  a  narrow  escape 
from  Hooty  the  Owl,  and  yet  he 
was  unhappy.  The  fact  is,  Peter 
was  more  unhappy  than  he  could 
remember  ever  to  have  been  be- 
fore.     Not  only  was  he  unhappy. 


ALMOST  DECIDES  TO  RETURN    57 

but  lie  was  In  great  feai%  and  the 
worst  of  it  was  he  was  in  fear  of 
an  enemy  who  could  go  wherever 
he  could  go  himself. 

You  see,  it  was  this  way :  Peter 
had  expected  to  find  some  enemies 
in  the  Old  Pasture.  He  had  felt 
quite  sure  that  fierce  old  Mr. 
Groshawk  was  to  be  watched  for, 
and  perhaps  Mr.  Redtail  and  one 
or  two  others  of  the  Hawk  family. 
He  knew  that  Granny  and  Reddy 
Fox  had  lived  there  once  upon  a 
time  and  might  come  back  if 
things  got  too  unpleasant  for  them 
on  the  Green  Meadows,  now  that 
Old  Man  Coyote  had  made  his 
home  there.  But  Peter  didn't 
worry  about  any  of  these  dangers. 
He  was  used  to  them,  was  Peter, 


58  MRS.   PETER  RABBIT 

He  had  been  dodging  them  ever 
since  he  could  remember.  A 
friendly  bramble-bush,  a  little 
patch  of  briars,  or  an  old  stone 
wall  near  was  all  that  Peter 
needed  to  feel  perfectly  safe  from 
these  enemies.  But  now  he  was 
in  danger  wherever  he  went,  for 
he  had  an  enemy  who  could  go 
everywhere  he  could,  and  it  seemed 
to  Peter  that  this  enemy  was  fol- 
lowing him  all  the  time.  Who 
was  it  ?  Why,  it  was  a  great 
big  old  Rabbit  with  a  very  short 
temper,  who,  because  he  had  lived 
there  for  a  long  time,  felt  that  he 
owned  the  Old  Pasture  and  that 
Peter  had  no  right  there. 

Now,  in  spite  of  all  his  trouble, 
Peter  had  seen  enough  of  the  Old 


ALMOST  DECIDES  TO  RETURN    59 

Pasture  to  tliink  it  a  very  won- 
derful place,  a  very  wonderful 
place  indeed.  He  had  seen  just 
enough  to  want  to  see  more. 
You  know  how  very  curious  Peter 
is.  It  seemed  to  him  that  he  just 
couldn't  go  back  to  the  dear  Old 
Briar-patch  on  the  Green  Mead- 
ows until  he  had  seen  everything 
to  be  seen  in  the  Old  Pasture. 
So  he  couldn't  make  up  his  mind 
to  go  back  home,  but  stayed  and 
stayed,  hoping  each  day  that  the 
old  gray  Rabbit  would  get  tired 
of  hunting  for  him,  and  would  let 
him  alone. 

But  the  old  gray  Rabbit  didn^t 
do  anything  of  the  kind.  He 
seemed  to  take  the  greatest  de- 
light    in     waiting     until      Peter 


60  MRS.   PETER  RABBIT 

tlioiiglit  tliat  lie  had  found  a 
corner  of  the  Old  Pasture  where 
he  would  be  safe,  and  then  in 
stealing  there  when  Peter  was 
trying  to  take  a  nap,  and  driving 
him  out.  Twice  Peter  had  tried 
to  fight,  but  the  old  gray  Rabbit 
was  too  big  for  him.  He  knocked 
all  the  wind  out  of  poor  Peter 
with  a  kick  from  his  big  hind  legs, 
and  then  with  his  sharp  teeth  he 
tore  Peter's  coat. 

Poor  Peter !  His  coat  had  al- 
ready been  badly  torn  by  the  cruel 
claws  of  Hooty  the  Owl,  and  Old 
Mother  Nature  hadn't  had  time  to 
mend  it  when  he  fought  with  the  I 
old  gray  Rabbit.  After  the  sec- 
ond time  Peter  didn't  try  to  fight 
again.     He  just  tried  to  keep  out 


ALMOST  DECIDES  TO  RETURN    61 

of  the  wav.  And  he  did,  too. 
But  in  doino;  it  he  lost  so  much 
sleep  and  he  had  so  little  to 
eat  that  he  grew  thin  and  thin 
and  thinner,  until,  with  his  torn 
clothes,  he  looked  like  a  scarecrow. 

And  still  he  hated  to  give  in 
When  there  was  still  so  much  to  see. 

''Persistence,  I  was  taught,  will  win. 
And  so  I  will  persist,"  said  he. 

And  he  did  persist  day  after 
day,  until  at  last  he  felt  that  he 
really  must  give  it  up.  He  had 
stretched  out  wearily  on  a  tiny 
sunninff-bank  in  the  farthest  cor- 
ner  of  the  Old  Pasture,  and  had 
just  about  made  up  his  mind  that 
he  would  go  back  that  very  night 
to  the  dear  Old  Briar-patch  on 
the  Green  Meadows,  when  a  tiny 


62  MRS.   PETER  RABBIT 

rustle  behind  him  made  him  jump 
to  his  feet  with  his  heart  in  his 
mouth.  But  instead  of  the  angry 
face  of  the  old  gray  Rabbit  he 
saw  —  what  do  you  think  ?  Why, 
two  of  the  softest,  gentlest  eyes 
peeping  at  him  from  behind  a  big 
fern. 


CHAPTER   XI 

PETER  RABBIT  HAS  A  SUDDEN  CHANGE 

OF  MIND 

Whatever  you  decide  to  do 
Make  up  your  mind  to  see  it  through. 

Peter  Rabbit, 

Peter  Rabbit  stared  at  the  two 
soft,  gentle  ejes  peeping  at  him 
from  behind  the  big  fern  just  back 
of  the  sunning-bank  in  the  far  cor- 
ner of  the  Old  Pasture.  He  had 
so  fully  expected  to  see  the  angry 
face  of  the  big,  gray,  old  Rabbit 
who  had  made  life  so  miserable  for 
him  that  for  a  minute  he  couldn't 
believe  that  he  really  saw  what  he 
did    see.     And   so  he  just   stared 


64  MRS.   PETER  RABBIT 

and  stared.  It  was  very  rude. 
Of  course  it  was.  It  was  very 
rude  indeed.  It  is  always  rude 
to  stare  at  any  one.  So  it  was  no 
wonder  that  after  a  minute  the 
two  soft,  gentle  eyes  disappeared 
behind  one  of  the  great  green 
leaves  of  the  fern.  Peter  gave  a 
great  sigh.  Then  he  remembered 
how  rude  he  had  been  to  stare 
so. 

^^I  —  I  beg  your  pardon/'  said 
Peter  in  his  politest  manner,  which 
is  very  polite  indeed,  for  Peter 
can  be  very  polite  when  he  wants 
to  be.  ^^  I  beg  your  pardon. 
I  didn't  mean  to  frighten  you. 
Please  forgive  me.'' 

With  the  greatest  eagerness 
Peter   waited  for   a    reply.       You 


PETER  HAS  A  CHANGE  OF  MIND     65 

know  it  was  because  he  had  been 
so  lonesome  that  he  had  left  his 
home  in  the  dear  Old  Briar-patch 
on  the  Green  Meadows.  And 
since  he  had  been  in  the  Old 
Pasture  he  had  been  almost  as 
lonesome,  for  he  had  had  no  one 
to  talk  to.  So  now  he  waited 
eagerly  for  a  reply.  You  see,  he 
felt  sure  that  the  owner  of  such 
soft,  gentle  eyes  must  have  a  soft, 
gentle  voice  and  a  soft,  gentle 
heart,  and  there  was  nothing  in 
the  world  that  Peter  needed  just 
then  so  much  as  sympathy.  But 
though  he  waited  and  waited, 
there  wasn't  a  sound  from  the  big 
fern. 

^^  Perhaps  you  don^t  know  who 
I  am.     Pm  Peter  Rabbit,  and  Pve 


66  MRS.   PETER  RABBIT 

come  up  here  from  tlie  Green 
Meadows,  and  Td  like  very  much 
to  be  your  friend/^  continued  Peter 
after  a  while.  Still  there  was  no 
sound.  Peter  peeped  from  the 
corner  of  one  eye  at  the  place 
where  he  had  seen  the  two  soft, 
gentle  eyes,  but  there  was  nothing 
to  be  seen  but  the  gently  waving 
leaf  of  the  big  fern.  Peter  didn't 
know  just  what  to  do.  He  wanted 
to  hop  over  to  the  big  fern  and 
peep  behind  it,  but  he  didn't  dare 
to.  He  was  afraid  that  whoever 
was  hiding  there  would  run  away.  ^ 

^'  Pm  very  lonesome  ;  won't  you 
speak  to  me  ?  "  said  Peter,  in  his 
gentlest  voice,  and  he  sighed  a 
deep,  doleful  sort  of  sigh.  Still 
there    was    no   reply.     Peter    had 


PETER  HAS  A  CHANGE  OF  MIND    67 

just  about  made  up  his  mind  that 
he  would  go  over  to  the  big  fern 
when  he  saw  those  two  soft,  gentle 
eyes  peeping  from  under  a  differ- 
ent leaf.  It  seemed  to  Peter  that 
never  in  all  his  life  had  he  seen 
such  beautiful  eyes.  They  looked 
so  shy  and  bashful  that  Peter  held 
his  breath  for  fear  that  he  would 
frighten  them  away. 

After  a  time  the  eyes  dis- 
appeared. Then  Peter  saw  a 
little  movement  among  the  ferns, 
and  he  knew  that  whoever  was 
there  was  stealing  away.  He 
wanted  to  follow,  but  something 
down  inside  him  warned  him  that 
it  was  best  to  sit  still.  So  Peter 
sat  just  where  he  was  and  kept 
perfectly  still  for  the  longest  time. 


68  MRS.   PETER  RABBIT 

But  the  eyes  didn't  appear  again, 
and  at  last  he  felt  sure  that  who- 
ever they  belonged  to  had  really 
gone  away.  Then  he  sighed  an- 
other great  sigh,  for  suddenly  he 
felt  more  lonesome  than  ever.  He 
hopped  over  to  the  big  fern  and 
looked  behind  it.  There  in  the 
soft  earth  was  a  footprint,  the 
footprint  of  a  Rabbit,  and  it  was 
smaller  than  his  own.  It  seemed 
to  Peter  that  it  was  the  most  won- 
derful little  footprint  he  ever  had 
seen. 

'^I  believe/'  said  Peter  right 
out  loud,  "  that  Til  change  my 
mind.  I  won't  go  back  to  the 
dear  Old  Briar-patch  just  yet, 
after  all." 


CHAPTER   Xn 

PETER  LEARNS  SOMETHING  FROM 
TOMMY  TIT 

When  you  find  a  friend  in  trouble 

Pass  along  a  word  of  cheer. 
Often  it  is  very  helpful 

Just  to  feel  a  friend  is  near. 

Peter  Rabbit. 

"  Hello,  Peter  Rabbit !  What 
are  you  doing  way  up  here,  and 
what  are  you  looking  so  mournful 
about  ?  '^ 

Peter  gave  a  great  start  of 
pleased  surprise.  That  was  the 
first  friendly  voice  he  had  heard 
for  days  and  days. 

"  Hello  yourself,  Tommy  Tit !  '^ 


70  MRS.  PETER  RABBIT 

shouted  Peter  joyously.  ^^My, 
my,  my,  but  I  am  glad  to  see  you ! 
But  what  are  you  doing  up  here 
in  the  Old  Pasture  yourself  ?  '^ 

Tommy  Tit  the  Chickadee 
hung  head  down  from  the  tip  of 
a  slender  branch  of  a  maple-tree 
and  winked  a  saucy  bright  eye  at 
Peter.  ^^Tve  got  a  secret  up 
here/^  he  said. 

Now  there  is  nothing  in  the 
world  Peter  Rabbit  loves  more 
than  a  secret.  But  he  cannot 
keep  one  to  save  him.  No,  Sir, 
Peter  Rabbit  can  no  more  keep  a 
secret  than  he  can  fly.  He  means 
to.  His  intentions  are  the  very 
best  in  the  world,  but  — 

Alas !  alack !  poor  Peter's  tongue 
Is  very,  very  loosely  hung. 


PETER  LEARNS  SOMETHING      71 

And  so,  because  he  must  talk 
and  will  talk  every  chance  he  gets, 
he  cannot  keep  a  secret.  People 
who  talk  too  much  never  can. 

''  What  is  your  secret  ? ''  asked 
Peter  eagerly. 

Tommy  Tit  looked  down  at 
Peter,  and  his  sharp  little  eyes 
twinkled.  ''It's  a  nest  with  six 
of  the  dearest  little  babies  in  the 
world  in  it,''  he  replied. 

"  Oh,  how  lovely  ! "  cried  Peter. 
^' Where  is  it.  Tommy  Tit?" 

"  Li  a  hollow  birch-stub,"  re- 
plied Tommy,  his  eyes  twinkling 
more  than  ever. 

''But  where  is  the  hollow  birch- 
stub  ? "  persisted  Peter. 

Tommy  laughed.  "That's  my 
real    secret,"    said   he,    "  and   if  I 


7£  MRS.   PETER  RABBIT 

should  tell  you  it  wouldn't  be  a 
secret  at  all.  Now  tell  me  what 
you  are  doing  up  here  in  the  Old 
Pasture,  Peter  Rabbit/' 

Peter  saw  that  it  was  of  no  use 
to  tease  Tommy  Tit  for  his  secret,  so 
instead  he  poured  out  all  his  own 
troubles.  He  told  how  lonesome 
he  had  been  in  the  dear  Old  Briar- 
patch  on  the  Green  Meadows  be- 
cause he  didn't  dare  to  go  about 
for  fear  of  Old  Man  Coyote,  and 
how  at  last  he  had  decided  to  visit 
the  Old  Pasture.  He  told  how 
Hooty  the  Owl  had  nearly  caught 
him  on  his  way,  and  then  how, 
ever  since  his  arrival,  he  had  been 
hunted  by  the  big,  gray,  old  Rabbit 
so  that  he  could  neither  eat  nor 
sleep  and  had  become  so  miserable 


PETER  LEARNS  SOMETHING      73 

that  at  last  he  had  made  up  his 
mind  to  go  back  to  the  dear  Old 
Briar-patch. 

''  Ho  !  ^'  interrupted  Tommy 
Tit,  *a  know  him.  He's  Old  Jed 
Thumper,  the  oldest,  biggest. 
Grossest  Rabbit  anywhere  around. 
He's  lived  in  the  Old  Pasture  so 
long  that  he  thinks  he  owns  it. 
It's  a  wonder  that  he  hasn't  killed 
you." 

''  I  guess  perhaps  he  would 
have  only  I  can  run  faster  than  he 
can,"  replied  Peter,  looking  a  little 
shamefaced  because  he  had  to  own 
up  that  he  ran  away  instead  of 
fighting. 

Tommy  Tit  laughed.  '^  That's 
the  very  wisest  thing  you  could 
have  done,"   said   he.      ^^But  why 


74  MRS.   PETER  RABBIT 

don't  you  go  back  to  the  dear 
Old  Briar-patch  in  the  Green 
Meadows  ? '' 

Peter  hesitated  and  looked  a 
wee  bit  foolish.  Finally  he  told 
Tommy  Tit  all  about  the  two  soft, 
gentle  eyes  he  had  seen  peeping 
at  him  from  behind  a  big  fern, 
and  how  he  wanted  to  know  who 
the  eyes  belonged  to. 

"  If  that's  all  you  want  to 
know,  I  can  tell  you,''  said 
Tommy  Tit,  jumping  out  into  the 
air  to  catch  a  foolish  little  bug 
who  tried  to  fly  past.  "  Those 
eyes  belong  to  little  Miss  Fuzzy- 
tail,  and  she's  the  favorite  daugh- 
ter of  Old  Jed  Thumper.  You 
take  my  advice,  Peter  Rabbit,  and 
trot  along  home  to  the  Old  Briar- 


rl  ARRIS  °M-Caoy    vt^W^^^"'^l/  *~ 


"Those  eyes  belong  to  little  Miss  Fuzzytail/' 

P^^^  74. 


PETER  LEARNS   SOMETHING      75 

patch  before  jou  get  into  any 
more  trouble.  There's  my  wife 
calling.  Yes,  my  dear,  Pm  com- 
ing !   Chickadee-dee-dee !  ^^ 

And  with  a  wink  and  a  nod  to 
Peter  Rabbit,  off  flew  Tommy 
Tit. 


CHAPTER   XIII 

LITTLE  MISS  FUZZYTAIL 

Foolish    questions   waste    time,    but   wise 

questions  lead  to  knowledge. 

Peter  Rabbit. 

''  Little  Miss  Fuzzytail ! ''  Peter 
said  it  over  and  over  again,  as 
he  sat  on  the  sunning-bank  in 
the  far  corner  of  the  Old  Pasture, 
where  Tommy  Tit  the  Chickadee 
had  left  him. 

''It's  a  pretty  name,''  said 
Peter.  ''  Yes,  Sir,  it's  a  pretty 
name.  It's  the  prettiest  name 
I've  ever  heard.  I  wonder  if  she 
is  just  as  pretty.  I  —  I  —  think 
she  must    be.     Yes,    I    am    quite 


LITTLE  MISS  FUZZYTAIL        77 

sure  she  must  be/^  Peter  was 
thinking  of  the  soft,  gentle  eyes 
he  had  seen  peeping  at  him  from 
behind  the  big  fern,  and  of  the 
dainty  little  footprint  he  had 
found  there  afterward.  So  he 
sat  on  the  sunning-bank,  dream- 
ing pleasant  dreams  and  wonder- 
ino;  if  he  could  find  little  Miss 
Fuzzytail  if  he  should  go  look 
for  her. 

Now  all  the  time,  although 
Peter  didn't  know  it,  little  Miss 
Fuzzytail  was  very  close  by.  She 
was  right  back  in  her  old  hiding- 
place  behind  the  big  fern,  shyly 
peeping  out  at  him  from  under 
a  great  leaf,  where  she  was  sure 
he  wouldn't  see  her.  She  saw 
the    long    tears     in    Peter's    coat, 


78  MRS.   PETER  RABBIT 

made  by  the  cruel  claws  of  Hooty 
the  Owl,  and  she  saw  the  places 
where  her  father,  Old  Jed  Thumper, 
had  pulled  the  hair  out  with  his 
teeth.  She  saw  how  thin  and 
miserable  Peter  looked,  and  tears 
of  pity  filled  the  soft,  gentle  eyes 
of  little  Miss  Fuzzytail,  for,  you 
see,  she  had  a  very  tender  heart, 
^^He^s  got  a  very  nice  face,^^ 
thought  Miss  Fuzzytail,  "  and  he 
certainly  was  very  polite,  and  I 
do  love  good  manners.  And  Peter 
is  such  a  nice  sounding;  name ! 
It  sounds  so  honest  and  good  and 
true.  Poor  fellow !  Poor  Peter 
Rabbit ! ''  Here  little  Miss  Fuzzy- 
tail  wiped  her  eyes.  ^'  He  looks 
so  miserable  I  do  wish  I  could 
do  something  for   him.      I  —  I  — 


LITTLE  MISS  FUZZYTAIL        79 

oh,  dear,  I  do  believe  he  is  com- 
ing right  over  here !  I  guess  I 
better  be  going.      How  he  limps  !  '^ 

Once  more  the  tears  filled  her 
soft,  gentle  eyes  as  she  stole  away, 
making  not  the  least  little  sound. 
When  she  was  sure  she  was  far 
enough  away  to  hurry  without 
attracting  Peter's  attention,  she 
began  to  run. 

^^I  saw  him  talking  to  my  old 
friend  Tommy  Tit  the  Chicka- 
dee, and  I  just  know  that  Tommy 
will  tell  me  all  about  him,''  she 
thought,  as  she  scampered  along 
certain  private  little  paths  of  her 
own. 

Just  as  she  expected,  she  found 
Tommy  Tit  and  his  anxious  little 
wife,  Phcebe,    very   busy    hunting 


80  MRS.  PETER  RABBIT 

for  food  for  six  hungry  little 
babies  snugly  hidden  in  a  hollow 
near  the  top  of  the  old  birch- 
stub.  Tommy  was  too  busy  to 
talk  then,  so  little  Miss  Fuzzy- 
tail  sat  down  under  a  friendly 
bramble-bush  to  rest  and  wait, 
and  while  she  waited,  she  care- 
fully washed  her  face  and  brushed 
her  coat  until  it  fairly  shone. 
You  see,  not  in  all  the  Old 
Pasture,  or  the  Green  Forest, 
was  there  so  slim  and  trim  and 
neat  and  dainty  a  Rabbit  as  little 
Miss  Fuzzytail,  and  she  was  very, 
very  particular  about  her  ap- 
pearance. 

By  and  by,  Tommy  Tit  stopped 
to  rest.  He  looked  down  at 
Miss     Fuzzytail      and    winked    a    | 


LITTLE  MISS  FUZZYTAIL        81 

saucy  black  eye.  Miss  Fuzzytail 
winked  back.  Then  both  laughed, 
for  they  were  very  good  friends, 
indeed. 

^^Tell  me,  Tommy  Tit,  all 
about  Peter  Rabbit,^'  commanded 
little  Miss  Fuzzytail.  And  Tom- 
my did. 


CHAPTER   XIV 

SOME  ONE  FOOLS  OLD  JED  THUMPER 

You  cannot  judge  a  person's  temper  by  his 
size.  There  is  more  meanness  in  the  head  of 
a  Weasel  than  in  the  whole  of  a  Bear. 

Peter  Rabbit, 

Old  Jed  Thumper  sat  in  his 
bull-briar  castle  in  the  middle  of 
the  Old  Pasture,  scowling  fiercely 
and  muttering  to  himself.  He  was 
very  angry,  was  Old  Jed  Thumper. 
He  was  so  angry  that  presently  he 
stopped  muttering  and  began  to 
chew  rapidly  on  nothing  at  all 
but  his  temper,  which  is  a  way 
angry  Rabbits  have. 

The  more  he  chewed  his  temper, 


SOME  ONE  FOOLS  JED  THUMPER    83 

the  angrier  he  grew.  He  was  big 
and  stout  and  strong  and  gray. 
He  had  lived  so  long  in  the  Old 
Pasture  that  he  felt  that  it  be- 
longed to  him  and  that  no  other 
Rabbit  had  any  right  there  un- 
less he  said  so.  Yet  here  was  a 
strange  Rabbit  who  had  had  the 
impudence  to  come  up  from  the 
Green  Meadows  and  refused  to  be 
driven  away.      Such  impudence  ! 

Of  course  it  was  Peter  Rabbit 
of  whom  Old  Jed  Thumper  was 
thinking.  It  was  two  days  since 
he  had  caught  a  glimpse  of  Peter, 
but  he  knew  that  Peter  was  still 
in  the  Old  Pasture,  for  he  had 
found  fresh  tracks  each  day.  That 
very  morning  he  had  visited  his 
favorite    feeding    ground,    only   to 


84  MRS.   PETER  RABBIT 

find  Peter's  tracks  there.  It  had 
made  him  so  angry  that  he  had 
lost  his  appetite,  and  he  had  gone 
straight  back  to  his  bull-briar 
castle  to  think  it  over.  At  last 
Old  Jed  Thumper  stopped  chew- 
ing on  his  temper.  He  scowled 
more  fiercely  than  ever  and 
stamped  the  ground  impatiently. 

^a^U  hunt  that  fellow  till  I 
kill  him,  or  drive  him  so  far  from 
the  Old  Pasture  that  hell  never 
think  of  coming  back.  I  cer- 
tainly will !  '^  he  said  aloud,  and 
started  forth  to  hunt. 

Now  it  would  have  been  better 
for  the  plans  of  Old  Jed  Thumper 
if  he  had  kept  them  to  himself 
instead  of  speaking  aloud.  Two 
dainty  little    ears    heard  what  he 


SOME  ONE  FOOLS  JED  THUMPER    85 

said,  and  two  soft,  gentle  eyes 
watched  him  leave  the  bull-briar 
castle.  He  started  straight  for 
the  far  corner  of  the  Old  Pasture 
where,  although  he  didn't  know 
it,  Peter  Rabbit  had  found  a 
warm  little  sunning-bank.  But 
he  hadnH  gone  far  when,  from 
way  off  in  the  opposite  direction, 
he  heard  a  sound  that  made  him 
stop  short  and  prick  up  his  long 
ears  to  listen.  There  it  was 
again  —  thump,  thump  !  He  was 
just  going  to  thump  back  an  an- 
gry reply,  when  he  thought  better 
of  it. 

^af  I  do  that,''  thought  he, 
^TU  only  warn  him,  and  he'll  run 
away,  just  as  he  has  before." 

So  instead,  he   turned  and  hur- 


86  MRS.   PETER  RABBIT 

ried  in  the  direction  from  which 
the  thumps  had  come,  taking  the 
greatest  care  to  make  no  noise. 
Every  few  jumps  he  would  stop 
to  listen.  Twice  more  he  heard 
those  thumps,  and  each  time  new 
rage  filled  his  heart,  and  for  a 
minute  or  two  he  chewed  his 
temper. 

^^  He's  down  at  my  blueberry- 
patch,^'   he  muttered. 

At  last  he  reached  the  blue- 
berry-patch. Very  softly  he  crept 
to  a  place  where  he  could  see 
and  not  be  seen.  No  one  was 
there.  No,  Sir,  no  one  was  there ! 
He  waited  and  watched,  and  there 
wasn't  a  hair  of  Peter  Rabbit  to 
be  seen.  He  was  just  getting 
ready  to  go  look  for  Peter's  tracks 


SOME  ONE  FOOLS  JED  THUMPER    87 

when  lie  heard  that  thump,  thump 
again.  This  time  it  came  from 
his  favorite  clover-patch  where  he 
never  allowed  even  his  favorite 
daughter,  little  Miss  Fuzzytail,  to 
go.  Anger  nearly  choked  him 
as  he  hurried  in  that  direction. 
But  when  he  got  there,  just  as 
before  no   one  was  to  be  seen. 

So,  all  the  morning  long.  Old 
Jed  Thumper  hurried  from  one 
place  to  another  and  never  once 
caught  sight  of  Peter  Rabbit. 
Can  you  guess  why  ?  Well,  the 
reason  was  that  all  the  time 
Peter  was  stretched  out  on  his 
warm  sunning-bank  getting  the 
rest  he  so  much  needed.  It  was 
some  one  else  who  was  fooling 
Old  Jed  Thumper. 


CHAPTER   XV 

A  PLEASANT  SURPRISE  FOR  PETER 

Sticks  will  break  and  sticks  will  bend, 
And  all  things  bad  will  have  an  end. 

Peter  Rabbit. 

All  morning,  while  some  one 
was  fooling  Old  Jecl  Thumper, 
the  cross  old  Rabbit  who  thought 
he  owned  the  Old  Pasture,  Peter 
Rabbit  lay  stretched  out  on  the 
warm  little  sunning-bank,  dream- 
ing of  soft,  gentle  eyes  and  beauti- 
ful little  footprints.  It  was  a 
dangerous  place  to  go  to  sleep, 
because  at  any  time  fierce  Mr. 
Goshawk    might    have    come    that 


PLEASANT  SURPRISE  FOR  PETER    89 

waj,  and  if  he  had,  and  had 
found  Peter  Rabbit  asleep,  why, 
that  would  have  been  the  end  of 
Peter  and  all  the  stories  about 
him. 

Peter  did  go  to  sleep.  You 
see,  the  sunning-bank  was  so 
warm  and  comfortable,  and  he 
was  so  tired  and  had  had  so 
little  sleep  for  such  a  long  time 
that,  in  spite  of  all  he  could  do, 
he  nodded  and  nodded  and  finally 
slipped  off  into  dreamland. 

Peter  slept  a  long  time,  for 
no  one  came  to  disturb  him.  It 
was  past  noon  when  he  opened 
his  eyes  and  blinked  up  at  jolly, 
round,  red  Mr.  Sun.  For  a 
minute  he  couldn't  remember 
where  he  was.      When  he  did,  he 


90  MRS.   PETER  RABBIT 

sprang  to  his  feet  and  hastily 
looked  this  way  and  that  way. 

^'  My  gracious  ! ''  exclaimed 
Peter.  ''  My  gracious,  what  a 
careless  fellow  I  am !  It's  a 
wonder  that  Old  Jed  Thumper 
didn't  find  me  asleep.  My,  but 
Pm  hungry !  Seems  as  if  I 
hadn't  had  a  good  square  meal 
for  a  year." 

Peter  stopped  suddenly  and 
began  to  wrinkle  his  nose. 
"  Um-m  !  "  said  he,  "  if  I  didn't 
know  better,  I  should  say  that 
there  is  a  patch  of  sweet  clover 
close  by.  Um-m,  my,  my  !  Am 
I  really  awake,  or  am  I  still 
dreaming  ?  I  certainly  do  smell 
sweet  clover ! " 

Slowly   Peter    turned   his    head 


PLEASANT  SURPRISE  FOR  PETER    91 

in  the  direction  from  which  the 
delicious  smell  seemed  to  come. 
Then  he  whirled  around  and 
stared  as  hard  as  ever  he  could, 
his  mouth  gaping  wide  open  in 
surprise.  He  blinked,  rubbed  his 
eyes,  then  blinked  again.  There 
could  be  no  doubt  of  it ;  there 
on  the  edge  of  the  sunning-bank 
was  a  neat  little  pile  of  tender, 
sweet  clover.  Yes,  Sir,  there  it 
was  ! 

Peter  walked  all  around  it, 
looking  for  all  the  world  as  if 
he  couldn't  believe  that  it  was 
real.  Finally  he  reached  out  and 
nibbled  a  leaf  of  it.  It  was 
real ! 

There  was  no  doubt  in  Peter's 
mind    then.     Some    one    had    put 


92  MRS.  PETER  RABBIT 

it  there  while  Peter  was  asleep, 
and  Peter  knew  that  it  was  meant 
for  him.  Who  could  it  have 
been  ? 

Suddenly  a  thought  popped 
into  Peter's  head.  He  stopped 
eating  and  hopped  over  to  the 
big  fern  from  behind  which  he 
had  first  seen  the  two  soft,  gentle 
eyes  peeping  at  him  the  day  be- 
fore. There  in  the  soft  earth 
was  a  fresh  footprint,  and  it 
looked  very,  very  much  like  the 
footprint  of  dainty  little  Miss 
Fuzzytail ! 

Peter's  heart  gave  a  happy 
little  jump.  He  felt  sure  now 
who  had  put  the  clover  there. 
He  looked  wistfully  about  among 
the    ferns,    but    she    was   nowhere 


PLEASANT  SURPRISE  FOR  PETER    93 

to  be  seen.  Finally  lie  hopped 
back  to  the  pile  of  clover  and 
ate  it,  every  bit,  and  it  seemed 
to  him  that  it  was  the  sweetest, 
tenderest  clover  he  had  ever 
tasted  in  all  his  life. 


CHAPTER   XVI 

PETER  RABBIT'S  LOOKING-GLASS 

If  people  by  their  looks  are  judged, 
As  judged  they're  sure  to  be, 

Why  each  should  always  look  his  best, 
I*m  sure  you  will  agree. 

Peter  Rabbit. 

For  the  first  time  in  his  life 
Peter  Rabbit  had  begun  to  think 
about  his  clothes.  Always  he 
had  been  such  a  happy-go-lucky 
fellow  that  it  never  had  entered 
his  head  to  care  how  he  looked. 
He  laughed  at  Sammy  Jay  for 
thinking  so  much  of  that  beauti- 
ful  blue-and-white  coat  he  wears, 
and  he  poked  fun  at  Reddy  Fox 
for   bragging   so   much    about    his 


PETER  RABBIT'S  LOOKING-GLASS    95 

handsome  suit.  As  for  himself, 
Peter  didn^t  care  how  he  looked. 
If  his  coat  was  whole,  or  in  rags 
and  tags,  it  was  all  the  same  to 
Peter. 

But  now  Peter,  sitting  on  the 
edge  of  his  sunning-bank  in  the 
far  corner  of  the  Old  Pasture, 
suddenly  realized  that  he  wanted 
to  be  good-looking.  Yes,  Sir,  he 
wanted  to  be  good-looking.  He 
wished  that  he  were  bigger.  He 
wished  that  he  were  the  biggest 
and  strongest  Rabbit  in  the  world. 
He  wished  that  he  had  a  hand- 
some coat.  And  it  was  all  be- 
cause of  the  soft,  gentle  eyes  of 
little  Miss  Fuzzytail  that  he  had 
seen  peeping  out  at  him  so  often. 
He    felt    sure    that    it    was    little 


96  MRS.   PETER  RABBIT 

Miss  Fuzzytail  herself  who  had 
left  the  pile  of  sweet  clover 
close  by  his  sunning-bank  the 
other  day  while  he  was  asleep. 

The  fact  is,  Peter  Rabbit  was 
falling  in  love.  Yes,  Sir,  Peter 
Rabbit  was  falling  in  love.  All 
he  had  seen  of  little  Miss  Fuzzy- 
tail  were  her  soft,  gentle  eyes, 
for  she  was  very  shy  and  had 
kept  out  of  sight.  But  ever 
since  he  had  first  seen  them, 
he  had  thought  and  dreamed  of 
nothing  else,  until  it  seemed  as 
if  there  were  nothing  in  the 
world  he  wanted  so  much  as  to 
meet  her.  Perhaps  he  would  have 
wanted  this  still  more  if  he  had 
known  that  it  was  she  who 
had    fooled    her    father.    Old    Jed 


PETER  RABBIT'S  LOOKING-GLASS    97 

Tlium23er,  the  big,  gray,  old  Rab- 
bit, so  that  Peter  might  have 
the  long  nap  on  the  sunning- 
bank  he  so  needed. 

/^Tve  just  got  to  meet  her. 
Tve  just  got  to  !  ^^  said  Peter  to 
himself,  and  right  then  he  began 
to  wish  that  he  were  big  and 
fine-looking. 

"  My,  I  must  be  a  sight !  '^  he 
thought.  "  I  wonder  how  I  do 
look,  anyway.  I  must  hunt  up 
a  looking-glass  and  find  out.^^ 

Now  when  Peter  Rabbit  thinks 
of  doing  a  thing,  he  wastes  very 
little  time.  It  was  that  way  now. 
He  started  at  once  for  the  bit  of 
swamp  where  he  had  first  seen 
the  tracks  of  Old  Jed  Thumper. 
He  still  limped  from   the  wounds 


98  MRS.   PETER  RABBIT 

made  by  Hooty  the  Owl.  But 
in  spite  of  this  he  could  travel 
pretty  fast,  and  it  didn't  take 
him  long  to  reach  the  swamp. 

There,  just  as  he  expected, 
he  found  a  looking-glass.  What 
was  it  like?  Wliy,  it  was  just  a 
tiny  pool  of  water.  Yes,  Sir,  it 
was  a  quiet  pool  of  water  that 
reflected  the  ferns  growing  around 
it  and  the  branches  of  the  trees 
hanging  over  it,  and  Peter  Rab- 
bit himself  sitting  on  the  edge 
of  it.  That  was  Peter's  looking- 
glass. 

For  a  long  time  he  stared 
into  it.  At  last  he  gave  a  great 
sigh.  ''  My,  but  I  am  a  sight ! '' 
he  exclaimed. 

He  was.     His  coat  was  ragged 


PETER  RABBIT'S  LOOKING-GLASS    99 

and  torn  from  the  claws  of 
Hooty  the  Owl  and  the  teeth  of 
Old  Jed  Thumper.  The  white 
patch  on  the  seat  of  his  trousers 
was  stained  and  dirty  from  sit- 
ting down  in  the  mud.  There 
were  burrs  tangled  in  his  waist- 
coat.  He  was  thin  and  alto- 
gether a  miserable  looking  Rab- 
bit. 

"  It  must  be  that  Miss  Fuzzy- 
tail  just  pities  me.  She  certainly 
can't  admire  me/'  muttered  Peter, 
as  he  pulled  out  the  burrs. 

For  the  next  hour  Peter  was 
very  busy.  He  washed  and  he 
brushed  and  he  combed.  When, 
at  last,  he  had  done  all  that  he 
could,  he  took  another  look  in 
his    looking-glass,    and     what     he 


100  MRS.   PETER  RABBIT 

saw  was  a  very  different   looking 
Rabbit. 

"Though  I  am  homely,  lank  and  lean, 
I  can  at  least  be  neat  and  clean," 

said    he,   as    lie    started    back   for 
the  sunning-bank. 


CHAPTER   XVn 

PETER  MEETS  MISS  PUZZYTAIL 

That  this  is  true  there's  no  denying  — 
There's  nothing  in  the  world  Hke  trying. 

Peter  Rabbit. 

Petee  Rabbit  was  feeling 
better.  Certainly  he  was  looking 
better.  You  see,  just  as  soon  as 
Old  Mother  Nature  saw  that 
Peter  was  trying  to  look  as  well 
as  he  could,  and  was  keeping 
himself  as  neat  and  tidy  as  he 
knew  how,  she  was  ready  to  help, 
as  she  always  is.  She  did  her 
best  with  the  rents  in  his  coat, 
made  by  the  claws  of  Hooty  the 
Owl    and   the    teeth    of    Old   Jed 


102  MRS.   PETER  RABBIT 

Tliumpei%  and  so  it  wasn't  long 
before  Peter's  coat  looked  nearly 
as  good  as  new.  Then,  too, 
Peter  was  getting  enough  to  eat 
these  days.  Days  and  days  had 
passed  since  he  had  seen  Old  Jed 
Thumper,  and  this  had  given  him 
time  to  eat  and  sleep. 

Peter  wondered  what  had  be- 
come of  Old  Jed  Thumper. 
"  Perhaps  something  has  hap- 
pened to  him/'  thought  Peter. 
^^  I  —  I  almost  hope  something 
has."  Then,  being  ashamed  of 
such  a  wish,  he  added,  "  Some- 
thing not  very  dreadful,  but 
which  will  keep  him  from  hunt- 
ing me  for  a  while  and  trying 
to  drive  me  out  of  the  Old 
Pasture." 


PETER  MEETS  MISS  FUZZYTAIL    103 

Now  all  this  time  Peter  had 
been  trying  to  find  little  Miss 
Fuzzytail.  He  was  already  in 
love  with  her,  although  all  he 
had  seen  of  her  were  her  two 
soft,  gentle  eyes,  shyly  peeping 
at  him  from  behind  a  big  fern. 
He  had  wandered  here  and  saun- 
tered there,  looking  for  her,  but 
although  he  found  her  footprints 
very  often,  she  always  managed 
to  keep  out  of  his  sight.  You 
see,  she  knew  the  Old  Pasture 
so  much  better  than  he  did,  and 
all  the  little  paths  in  it,  that 
she  had  very  little  trouble  in 
keeping  out  of  his  way.  Then, 
too,  she  was  very  busy,  for  it 
was  she  who  was  keeping  her 
cross    father.   Old    Jed    Thumper, 


104  MRS.   PETER  RABBIT 

away  from  Peter,  because  slie 
was  so  sorry  for  Peter.  But 
Peter  didn't  know  this.  If  he 
had,  I  am  afraid  that  he  would 
have  been  more  in  love  than 
ever. 

The  harder  she  was  to  find, 
the  more  Peter  wanted  to  find 
her.  He  spent  a  great  deal  of 
time  each  day  brushing  his  coat 
and  making  himself  look  as  fine 
as  he  could,  and  while  he  was 
doing  it,  he  kept  wishing  over 
and  over  again  that  something 
would  happen  so  that  he  could 
show  little  Miss  Fuzzytail  what  a 
smart,  brave  fellow  he  really  was. 

But  one  day  followed  another, 
and  Peter  seemed  no  nearer  than 
ever  to  meeting  little  Miss  Fuzzy- 


PETER  MEETS  MISS  FUZZYTAIL    105 

tail.  He  was  thinking;  of  this 
one  morning  and  was  really  grow- 
ing very  down-hearted,  as  he  sat 
under  a  friendly  bramble-bush, 
when  suddenly  there  was  a  sharp 
little  scream  of  fright  from  be- 
hind a  little  juniper- tree. 

Somehow  Peter  knew  whose 
voice  that  was,  although  he  never 
had  heard  it  before.  He  sprang 
around  the  little  juniper-tree, 
and  what  he  saw  filled  him  with 
such  rase  that  he  didn't  once 
stop  to  think  of  himself.  There 
was  little  Miss  Fuzzytail  in  the 
clutches  of  Black  Pussy,  Farmer 
Brown's  cat,  who  often  stole 
away  from  home  to  hunt  in  the 
Old  Pasture.  Like  a  flash  Peter 
sprang  over  Black  Pussy,   and  as 


106  MRS.   PETER  RABBIT 

he  did  so  he  kicked  with  all  his 
might •  The  cat  hadn't  seen  him 
coming,  and  the  kick  knocked 
her  right  into  the  prickly  juniper- 
tree.  Of  course  she  lost  her 
grip  on  little  Miss  Fuzzytail,  who 
hadn't  been  hurt  so  much  as 
frightened. 

By  the  time  the  cat  got  out 
of  the  juniper- tree,  Peter  and 
Miss  Fuzzytail  were  sitting  side 
by  side  safe  in  the  middle  of  a 
bull-briar  patch. 

"  Oh,  how  brave  you  are ! '' 
sobbed  little  Miss  Fuzzytail. 

And  this  is  the  way  that  Peter 
Rabbit  at  last  got  his  heart's 
desire. 


CHAPTER   XYin 

TOMMY  TIT  PROVES  A  FRIEND  INDEED 

Nothing  in  all  the  world  is  so  precious  as  a 
true  friend. 

Peter  Rabbit. 

After  Peter  Rabbit  had  saved 
little  Miss  Fuzzytail  from  Black 
Pussy,  the  cat  who  belonged  way 
down  at  Farmer  BrowiVs  house  and 
had  no  business  hunting  in  the  Old 
Pasture,  he  went  with  her  as  near 
to  her  home  as  she  would  let  him. 
She  said  that  it  wasnH  necessary  that 
he  should  go  a  single  step,  but  Peter 
insisted  that  she  needed  him  to  see 
that  no  more  harm  came  to  her. 
Miss  Fuzzytail  laughed  at  that,  for 


108  MRS.   PETER  RABBIT 

she  felt  quite  able  to  take  care  of 
herself.  It  had  been  just  stupid 
carelessness  on  her  part  that  had 
given  Black  Pussy  the  chance  to 
catch  her,  she  said,  and  she  was 
very  sure  that  she  never  Avould  be 
so  careless  again.  What  she  didn't 
tell  Peter  was  that  she  had  been  so 
busy  peeping  at  him  and  admiring 
him  that  she  had  quite  forgotten  to 
watch  out  for  danger  for  herself. 

Finally  she  said  that  he  could  go 
part  way  with  her.  But  when  they 
were  almost  within  sight  of  the  bull- 
briar  castle  of  her  father,  Old  Jed 
Thumper,  the  big,  gray  Rabbit  who 
thought  he  owned  the  Old  Pasture, 
she  made  Peter  turn  back.  You 
see,  she  was  afraid  of  what  Old  Jed 
Thumper   might  do   to  Peter,  and 


TOMMY  TIT  PROVES  A  FRIEND    109 

—  well,  the  truth  is  she  was  afraid 
of  what  he  might  do  to  her  if  he 
should  find  out  that  she  had  made 
friends  with  Peter. 

So  Peter  was  forced  to  go  back, 
but  he  took  with  him  a  half  promise 
that  she  would  meet  him  the  next 
night  up  near  his  sunning-bank  in 
the  far  corner  of  the  Old  Pasture. 

After  that  there  were  many  pleas- 
ant days  for  Peter  Rabbit.  Some- 
times little  Miss  Fuzzytail  would 
meet  him,  and  sometimes  she  would 
shyly  hide  from  him,  but  somehow, 
somewhere,  he  managed  to  see  her 
every  day,  and  so  all  the  time  in 
Peter ^s  heart  was  a  little  sono; : 

'*The  sky  is  blue  ;  the  leaves  are  green ; 
The  golden  sunbeams  peep  between ; 
My  heart  is  joyful  as  can  be, 
And  all  the  world  looks  bright  to  me." 


no  MRS.   PETER  RABBIT 

And  then  one  day  Old  Jed 
Thumper  found  out  all  about  how 
his  daughter,  little  Miss  Fuzzytail, 
and  Peter  Rabbit  had  become  such 
good  friends.  Old  Jed  Thumper 
went  into  a  terrible  ra^e.  He 
chewed  and  chewed  with  nothing; 
in  his  mouth,  that  is,  nothing  but 
his  temper,  the  way  an  angry 
Rabbit  will.  He  vowed  and  de- 
clared that  if  he  never  ate  another 
mouthful  he  would  drive  Peter 
Rabbit  from  the   Old  Pasture. 

My,  my,  my,  those  were  bad  days 
for  Peter  Rabbit !  Yes,  Sir,  those 
certainly  were  bad  days  !  Old  Jed 
Thumper  had  found  out  how  little 
Miss  Fuzzytail  had  been  fooling  him 
by  making  him  think  Peter  was  in 
parts  of  the  Old  Pasture   in  quite 


TOMMY  TIT  PROVES  A  FRIEND    111 

the  opposite  direction  from  where 
he  reallj  was.  Worse  still,  he  found 
Peter^s  favorite  sunning-bank  in  the 
far  corner  of  the  Old  Pasture  and 
would  hide  near  it  and  try  to  catch 
Peter  every  time  Peter  tried  to  get 
a  few  minutes^  rest  there.  He  did 
something  worse  than  that. 

One  day  he  saw  fierce  Mr.  Gos- 
hawk hunting.  He  let  Mr.  Goshawk 
almost  catch  him  and  then  ducked 
under  a  bramble-bush.  Then  he 
showed  himself  ao-ain  and  once  more 
escaped  in  the  same  way.  So  he  led 
fierce  Mr.  Goshawk  to  a  point  where 
Mr.  Goshawk  could  look  down  and 
see  Peter  Rabbit  stretched  out  on 
his  sunning-bank,  trying  to  get  a 
little  rest.  Right  away  Mr.  Goshawk 
forgot  all  about  Old  Jed  Thumper 


112  MRS.   PETER  RABBIT 

and  sailed  up  in  the  skj  from  where 
he  could  swoop  down  on  Peter, 
while  Old  Jed  Thimiper,  chuckling 
to  himself  wickedly,  hid  where  he 
could  Avatch  what  would  happen. 

That  certainly  would  have  been 
the  last  of  Peter  Rabbit  if  it  hadn't 
been  for  Tommy  Tit  the  Chickadee. 
Tommy  saw  Mr.  Goshawk  and  just 
in  time  warned  Peter,  and  so  Mr. 
Goshawk  got  only  his  claws  full  of 
soft  earth  for  his  pains,  while  Old 
Jed  Thumper  once  more  chewed  on 
nothing  in  rage  and  disappointment. 
Dear  me,  dear  me,  those  certainly 
were  dreadful  days  for  Peter  Rabbit 
and  little  Miss  Fuzzytail.  You  see, 
all  the  time  little  Miss  Fuzzytail 
was  terribly  worried  for  fear  Peter 
would  be  caught. 


CHAPTER   XIX 

OLD  MAN  COYOTE  PAYS  A  DEBT 

Some  little  seeds  of  goodness 
You'll  find  in  every  heart, 

To  sprout  and  keep  on  growing 
When  once  they  get  a  start. 

Peter  Rabbit, 

Mattees  went  from  bad  to 
worse  with  Peter  Rabbit  and  little 
Miss  Fuzzytail.  Peter  would  liave 
made  up  his  mind  to  go  back  to 
his  old  home  in  the  dear  Old  Briar- 
patch  on  the  Green  Meadows,  but 
he  felt  that  he  just  couldn^t  leave 
little  Miss  Fuzzytail,  and  little 
Miss  Fuzzytail  couldn't  make  up 
her  mind  to  go  with  Peter,  because 


114  MRS.   PETER  RABBIT 

she  felt  that  she  just  couldn't  leave 
the  Old  Pasture,  which  always  had 
been  her  home.  So  Peter  spent 
his  days  and  nights  ready  to  jump 
and  run  from  Jed  Thumper,  the 
gray  old  Rabbit  who  thought  he 
owned  the  Old  Pasture,  and  who 
had  declared  that  he  would  drive 
Peter  out. 

Now  Peter,  as  you  know,  had 
an  old  friend  in  the  Old  Pasture, 
Tommy  Tit  the  Chickadee.  One 
day  Tommy  took  it  into  his  head 
to  fly  down  to  the  Green  Meadows. 
There  he  found  everybody  wonder- 
ins  what  had  become  of  Peter 
Rabbit,  for  you  remember  Peter 
had  stolen  away  from  the  dear  Old 
Briar-patch  in  the  night  and  had 
told  no   one  where  he  was  going. 


That  night  Old  Man  Coyote  started   for  the 
Old  Pasture.     Page  IIS. 


OLD  MAN  COYOTE  PAYS  A  DEBT    115 

Now  one  of  the  first  to  ask  Tommy 
Tit  if  he  had  seen  Peter  Rabbit 
was  Old  Man  Coyote.  Tommy 
told  him  where  Peter  was  and  of 
the  dreadful  time  Peter  was  having. 
Old  Man  Coyote  asked  a  lot  of 
questions  about  the  Old  Pasture 
and  thanked  Tommy  very  politely 
as  Tommy  flew  over  to  the  Smiling 
Pool  to  call  on  Grandfather  Frog 
and  Jerry  Muskrat. 

That  night,  after  jolly,  round, 
red  Mr.  Sun  had  gone  to  bed  be- 
hind the  Purple  Hills,  and  the 
Black  Shadows  had  crept  over  the 
Green  Meadows,  Old  Man  Coyote 
started  for  the  Old  Pasture.  Now, 
he  had  never  been  there  before, 
but  he  had  asked  so  many  ques- 
tions of  Tommy  Tit,  and  he  is  so 


116  MRS.   PETER  RABBIT 

smart  anyway,  that  it  didn't  take 
him  long  to  go  all  through  the  Old 
Pasture  and  to  find  the  bull-briar 
castle  of  Old  Jed  Thumper,  who 
was  making  life  so  miserable  for 
Peter  Rabbit.  He  wasn't  at  home, 
but  Old  Man  Coyote's  wonderful 
nose  soon  found  his  tracks,  and 
he  followed  them  swiftly,  without 
making  a  sound.  Pretty  soon  he 
came  to  a  bramble-bush,  and  under 
it  he  could  see  Old  Jed  Thumper. 
For  just  a  minute  he  chuckled, 
a  noiseless  chuckle,  to  himself. 
Then  he  opened  his  mouth  and  out 
came  that  terrible  sound  which  had 
so  frightened  all  the  little  people 
on  the  Green  Meadows  when  Old 
Man  Coyote  had  first  come  there  to 
live. 


OLD  MAN  COYOTE  PAYS  A  DEBT    117 

'^Ha,  ha,  ha!  Ho,  ho,  ho! 
Hee,  hee,  hee  !      Ha,  ho,  hee,  ho  ! '' 

Old  Jed  Thumper  never  had 
heard  anything  like  that  before. 
It  frightened  him  so  that  before 
he  thought  what  he  was  doing  he 
had  jumped  out  from  under  the 
bramble-bush.  Of  course  this  was 
just  what  Old  Man  Coyote  wanted. 
In  a  flash  he  was  after  him,  and 
then  began  such  a  race  as  the  Old 
Pasture  never  had  seen  before. 
Round  and  round,  this  way  and 
that  way,  along  the  cow  paths 
raced  Old  Jed  Thumj)er  with  Old 
Man  Coyote  at  his  heels,  until  at 
last,  out  of  breath,  so  tired  that  it 
seemed  to  him  he  couldn't  run  an- 
other step,  frightened  almost  out 
of  his   senses,    Old   Jed   Thumper 


118  MRS.   PETER  RABBIT 

reached  his  bull-briar  castle  and 
was  safe. 

Then  Old  Man  Coyote  laughed 
his  terrible  laugh  once  more  and 
trotted  over  to  the  tumble-down 
stone-wall  in  which  his  keen  nose 
told  him  Peter  Rabbit  was  hiding. 

''  One  good  turn  deserves  an- 
other, and  I  always  pay  my  debts, 
Peter  Rabbit/'  said  he.  ''  You  did 
me  a  good  turn  some  time  ago 
down  on  the  Green  Meadows,  when 
you  told  me  how  Granny  and 
Reddy  Fox  were  planning  to  make 
trouble  for  me  by  leading  Bowser 
the  Hound  to  the  place  where  I 
took  my  daily  nap,  and  now  we  are 
even.  I  don't  think  that  old  gray 
Rabbit  will  dare  to  poke  so  much 
as   his   nose   out   of  his   bull-briar 


OLD  MAN  COYOTE  PAYS  A  DEBT    119 

castle  for  a  week.  Now  I  am 
going  back  to  the  Green  Meadows. 
Good  night,  Peter  Rabbit,  and 
don^t  forget  that  I  always  pay  my 
debts.'^ 

"  Good  night,  and  thank  you, 
Mr.  Coyote,^'  said  Peter,  and  then, 
when  Old  Man  Coyote  had  gone, 
he  added  to  himself  in  a  shame- 
faced way :  ^^  I  didn't  believe  him 
when  he  said  that  he  guessed  we 
would  be  friends.^' 


CHAPTER   XX 

LITTLE     MISS     FUZZYTAIL     WHISPERS 

**YES" 

Love  is  a  beautiful,  wonderful  thing. 

There's   nothing   quite   like   it   on   all   the 
green  earth. 
'Tis  love  in  the  heart  teaches  birdies  to  sing, 

And  gives  the  wide  world  all  its  joy  and 

its  mirth. 

Peter  Rabbit, 

Petee  Rabbit  was  finding  this 
out.  Always  lie  had  been  happy, 
for  happiness  had  been  born  in 
him.  But  the  happiness  he  had 
known  before  was  nothing  to  the 
happiness  that  was  his  when  he 
found  that  he  loved  little  Miss 
Fuzzytail  and  that  little  Miss 
Fuzzytail   loved    him.      Peter    was 


MISS  FUZZYTAIL  WHISPERS  "YES"  121 

sure  that  she  did  love  him,  al- 
though she  wouldn't  saj  so.  But 
love  doesn't  need  words,  and  Peter 
had  seen  it  shining  in  the  two  soft, 
gentle  eyes  of  little  Miss  Fuzzytail. 
So  Peter  was  happy  in  spite  of  the 
trouble  that  Old  Jed  Thumper,  the 
big,  gray  Rabbit  who  was  the 
father  of  little  Miss  Fuzzvtail,  had 
made  for  him  in  the  Old  Pasture. 

He  had  tried  very  hard,  very 
hard  indeed,  to  get  little  Miss 
Fuzzytail  to  go  back  with  him  to 
the  dear  Old  Briar-patch  on  the 
Green  Meadows,  but  in  spite  of  all 
he  could  say  she  couldn't  make  up 
her  mind  to  leave  the  Old  Pasture, 
which,  you  know,  had  been  her 
home  ever  since  she  was  born. 
And  Peter   couldn't  make   up  his 


122  MRS.   PETER  RABBIT 

mind  to  go  back  there  and  leave 
her,  because  —  why,  because  he 
loved  her  so  much  that  he  felt  that 
he  could  never,  never  be  happy 
without  her.  Then,  when  Old  Jed 
Thumper  was  hunting  Peter  so 
hard  that  he  hardly  had  a  chance 
to  eat  or  sleep,  had  come  Old  Man 
Coyote  the  Wolf  and  given  Old  Jed 
Thumper  such  a  fright  that  for  a 
week  he  didn^t  dare  poke  so  much 
as  his  nose  out  of  his  bull-briar 
casiie. 

Now,  although  Old  Man  Coyote 
didn't  know  it,  his  terrible  voice 
had  frightened  little  Miss  Fuzzy- 
tail  almost  as  much  as  it  had  Old 
Jed  Thumper.  You  see,  she  never 
had  heard  it  before.  She  didn^t 
even   know  what   it  was,    and   all 


MISS  FUZZYTAIL  WHISPERS  *' YES"  123 

that  nio;ht  she  had  crouched  in  her 
most  secret  hiding-place,  shivering 
and  shakino;  with  fright.  The  next 
morning  Peter  had  found  her  there. 
She  hadn^t  slept  a  wink,  and  she 
was  still  too  fiwhtened  to  even  2:0 
look  for  her  breakfast. 

^^  Oh,  Peter  Rabbit,  did  you  hear 
that  terrible  noise  last  nio;ht  ?  '^ 
she  cried. 

^^  What  noise  ?  ^^  asked  Peter, 
just  as  if  he  didn't  know  anything 
about  it. 

^'  Why,  that  terrible  voice  !  '^ 
cried  little  Miss  Fuzzytail,  and 
shivered  at  the  thought  of  it. 

^'  What  was  it  like  ? ''  asked 
Peter. 

^^  Oh,  I  can't  tell  you/'  said  little 
Miss   Fuzzytail.      ^'It   wasn't   like 


124  MRS.   PETER  RABBIT 

anything  I  ever  had  heard  before. 
It  was  something  like  the  voice  of 
Hootj  the  Owl  and  the  voice  of 
Dippy  the  Loon  and  the  voice  of  a 
little  yelping  dog  all  in  one,  and  it 
was  just  terrible  !  ^^ 

"  Oh/^  replied  Peter,  "  you  must 
mean  the  voice  of  my  friend,  Old 
Man  Coyote.  He  came  up  here 
last  night  just  to  do  me  a  good 
turn  because  I  once  did  him  a  good 
turn.^^ 

Then  he  told  all  about  how  Old 
Man  Coyote  had  come  to  the  Green 
Meadows  to  live,  and  how  he  was 
smarter  than  even  old  Granny  Fox, 
but  he  didn't  tell  her  how  he  him- 
self had  once  been  frightened  almost 
out  of  a  year's  growth  by  that  ter- 
rible voice,  or  that  it  was  because 


MISS  FUZZYTAIL  WHISPERS  "YES"  U5 

he  hadn't  really  believed  that  Old 
Man  Coyote  was  his  friend  that 
had  led  him  to  leave  the  Old 
Briar-patch  and  come  up  to  the 
Old  Pasture. 

'^  Is  —  is  he  fond  of  Rabbits  ?'' 
asked  little  Miss  Fuzzytail. 

Peter  was  quite  sure  that  he  was. 

'^  And  do  you  think  hell  come 
up  here  hunting  again?''  she  asked. 

Peter  didn't  know,  but  he  sus- 
pected that  he  would. 

^'  Oh,  dear/'  wailed  little  Miss 
Fuzzytail.  '^  Now,  I  never,  never 
will  feel  safe  ao:ain  !  " 

Then  Peter  had  a  happy  thought. 
^^  I  tell  you  what,"  said  he,  ^^  the 
safest  place  in  the  world  for  you 
and  me  is  my  dear  Old  Briar-patch, 
Won't  you  go  there  now  ?  " 


126  MRS.   PETER  RABBIT 

Little  Miss  Fuzzytail  sighed  and 
dropped  a  tear  or  two.  Then  she 
nestled  up  close  to  Peter.  ''  Yes/' 
she  whispered. 


CHAPTER   XXI 

PETER    AND    LITTLE    MISS    FUZZYTAIL 
LEAVE  THE  OLD  PASTURE 

A  danger  past  is  a  danger  past, 

So  why  not  just  forget  it  ? 
Watch  out  instead  for  the  one  ahead 

Until  you've  safely  met  it. 

Peter  Rabbit. 

As  soon  as  little  Miss  Fuzzytail 
had  agreed  to  go  with  him  to  make 
her  home  in  the  dear  Old  Briar- 
patch  down  on  the  Green  Meadows, 
Peter  Rabbit  fairly  boiled  over 
with  impatience  to  start.  He  had 
had  so  much  trouble  in  the  Old 
Pasture  that  he  was  afraid  if  they 
waited  too  long  little  Miss  Fuzzy- 
tail  might  change  her  mind,  and  if 


128  MRS.   PETER  RABBIT 

she  should  do  that  —  well,   Peter 
didn't  know  what  he  would  do. 

But  Peter,  who  always  had  been 
so  happy-go-lucky,  with  no  one  to 
think  about  but  himself,  now  felt 
for  the  first  time  re-sponsi-bil-ity. 
That's  a  big  word,  but  it  is  a  word 
that  everybody  has  to  learn  the 
meaning  of  sometime.  Johnny 
Chuck  learned  it  when  he  made  a 
home  for  Polly  Chuck  in  Farmer 
Brown's  orchard,  and  tried  to  keep 
it  a  secret,  so  that  no  harm  would 
come  to  Polly.  It  means  taking 
care  of  other  people  or  other 
people's  tilings,  and  feeling  that 
you  must  take  even  greater  care 
than  you  would  of  yourself  or  your 
own  things.  So,  while  Peter  him- 
self   would    have   been   willing'   to 


LEAVE  THE   OLD  PASTURE     129 

take  chances,  and  mio;ht  even  have 
made  the  journey  down  to  the  dear 
Old  Briar-patch  in  broad  daylight, 
he  felt  that  that  wouldn't  do  at 
all  for  little  Miss  Fuzzytail ;  that 
he  must  avoid  every  possible  chance 
of  dano;er  for  her. 

So  Peter  waited  for  a  dark  night, 
not  too  dark,  you  know",  but  a 
night  when  there  was  no  moon  to 
make  great  patches  of  light,  but 
only  the  kindly  little  Stars  looking 
down  and  twinkling  in  the  friendly 
way  they  have.  At  last  there  was 
just  such  a  night.  All  the  after- 
noon little  Miss  Fuzzytail  went 
about  in  the  Old  Pasture  saying 
good-by  to  her  friends  and  visiting 
each  one  of  her  favorite  little  paths 
and    hiding-places,    and    I   suspect 


130  MRS.    PETER  RABBIT 

that  in  each  one  she  dropped  a 
tear  or  two,  for  you  see  she  felt 
sure  that  she  never  would  see  them 
again,  although  Peter  had  promised 
that  he  would  brino;  her  back  to 
the  Old  Pasture  for  a  visit  when- 
ever she  wanted  to  come. 

At  last  it  was  time  to  start. 
Peter  led  the  way.  Very  big  and 
brave  and  strong  and  important  he 
felt,  and  very  timid  and  frightened 
felt  little  Miss  Fuzzytail,  hopping 
after  him  close  at  his  heels.  You 
see,  she  felt  that  she  was  going 
out  into  the  Great  World,  of  which 
she  knew  nothing;  at  all. 

''  Oh,  Peter,"  she  whispered, 
''  supposing  we  should  meet  Reddy 
Fox !  I  wouldn't  know  where  to 
run  or  hide.'' 


LEAVE  THE   OLD   PASTURE     131 

''  We  are  not  going  to  meet 
Reddy  Fox/'  replied  Peter,  "  but 
if  we  should,  all  you  have  to  do 
is  to  just  keep  yovu^  eyes  on  the 
white  patch  on  the  seat  of  my 
trousers  and  follow  me.  I  have 
fooled  Reddy  so  many  times  that 
Tm  not  afraid  of  him/' 

Never  in  all  his  life  had  Peter 
been  so  watchful  and  careful. 
That  was  because  he  felt  his  re- 
sponsi-bil-ity.  Every  few  jumps 
he  would  stop  to  sit  up  and 
look  and  listen.  Then  little  Miss 
Fuzzytail  would  nestle  up  close  to 
him,  and  Peter's  heart  would  swell 
with  happiness,  and  he  would  feel, 
oh,  so  proud  and  important.  Once 
they  heard  the  sharp  bark  of 
Reddy  Fox,  but  it  was  a  long  way 


132  MRS.   PETER  RABBIT 

off,  and  Peter  smiled,  for  lie  knew 
that  Reddy  was  hunting  on  the 
edge  of  the  Green  Forest. 

Once  a  dim  shadow  swept  across 
the  meadow  grass  ahead  of  them. 
Peter  dropped  flat  in  the  grass  and 
kept  perfectly  still,  and  little  Miss 
Fuzzytail  did  just  as  he  did,  as  she 
had  promised  she  would. 

''  Wha  —  what  was  it  ?  ^^  she 
whispered. 

''  I  think  it  was  Hooty  the 
Owl,'^  Peter  whispered  back,  ^^but 
he  didn^t  see  us.'^  After  what 
seemed  like  a  long,  long  time  they 
heard  Hooty's  fierce  hunting  call, 
but  it  came  from  way  back  of  them 
on  the  edge  of  the  Old  Pasture. 
Peter  hopped  to  his  feet. 

''  Come  on,^'  said  he.      "  There's 


LEAVE  THE  OLD   PASTURE     133 

nothing  to  fear  from  him 
now/^ 

So  slowly  and  watchfully  Peter 
led  the  way  down  across  the  Green 
Meadows  while  the  little  Stars 
looked  down  and  twinkled  in  the 
most  friendly  way,  and  just  as  jolly, 
round,  red  Mr.  Sun  started  to  kick 
off  his  bedclothes  behind  the 
Purple  Hills  they  reached  the  dear 
Old  Briar-patch. 

"  Here  we  are  !  ^^   cried  Peter. 

"  Oh,  Tm  so  glad ! ''  cried  little 
Miss  Fuzzytail,  hopping  along  one 
of  Peter's  private  little  paths. 


CHAPTER   XXII 

SAMMY  JAY  BECOMES  CURIOUS 

Learn  all  you  can  about  others,  but  keep 

your  own  affairs  to  yourself. 

Peter  Rabbit. 

Of  course  it  was  Sammy  Jay  who 
first  found  out  that  Peter  Rabbit 
was  back  in  the  dear  Old  Briar- 
patch.  Sammy  took  it  into  his  head 
to  fly  over  there  the  very  morning 
of  Peter's  home-coming.  Indeed, 
little  Miss  Fuzzy  tail  hadn't  had  time 
to  half  see  the  dear  Old  Briar-patch 
which,  you  know,  was  to  be  her  new 
home,  when  Peter  saw  Sammy  Jay 
coming.  Now  Peter  was  not  quite 
ready  to  have  all  the  world  know 


SAMMY  JAY  BECOMES  CURIOUS    135 

that  there  was  a  Mrs.  Peter,  for  of 
course  that  was  what  little  Miss 
Fuzzytail  was  now  that  she  had  come 
to  make  her  home  with  Peter.  They 
wanted  to  keep  by  themselves  for  a 
little  while  and  just  be  happy  with 
each  other.  So  as  soon  as  Peter 
saw  Sammy  Jay  headed  towards  the 
Old  Briar-patch,  he  hid  little  Miss 
Fuzzytail  under  the  thickest  sweet- 
briar  bush,  and  then  hurried  out  to 
the  nearest  sweet-clover  patch. 

Of  course  Sammy  Jay  saw  him 
right  away,  and  of  course  Sammy 
was  very  much  surprised. 

"  Hello,  Peter  Rabbit !  Where'd 
you  come  from  ? ''  he  shouted,  as  he 
settled  himself  comfortably  in  a  little 
poplar-tree  growing  on  the  edge  of 
the  Old  Briar-patch. 


136  MRS.   PETER  RABBIT 

^^Oli/'  said  Peter  witli  a  very 
grand  air,  ^^  I've  been  on  a  long 
journey  to  see  tlie  Great  World/' 

^^  Which  means/'  said  Sammy  Jay 
with  a  chuckle,  ''that  you've  been 
in  the  Old  Pasture  all  this  time, 
and  let  me  tell  you,  Peter  Rabbit, 
the  Old  Pasture  is  a  very  small 
part  of  the  Great  World.  By  the 
way,  Tommy  Tit  the  Chickadee 
was  down  here  the  other  day  and 
told  us  all  about  you.  He  said  that 
you  had  fallen  in  love  with  little 
Miss  Fuzzy  tail,  and  he  guessed  that 
you  were  going  to  make  your  home 
up  there.  What's  the  matter?  Did 
her  father.  Old  Jed  Thumper,  drive 
you  out  ?" 

"  No,  he  didn't !  "  snapped  Peter 
angrily.      ''It's  none  of  your  busi- 


SAMMY  JAY  BECOMES  CURIOUS    137 

ness  what  I  came  home  for,  Sammy 
Jay,  but  rU  tell  you  just  the  same. 
I  came  home  because  I  wanted  to." 

Sammy  chuckled,  for  he  dearly 
loves  to  tease  Peter  and  make  him 
angry.  Then  the  imp  of  mischief, 
who  seems  always  to  live  just  under 
that  smart  cap  of  Sammy's,  prompted 
him  to  ask  :  "  Did  you  come  home 
alone  ? '' 

Now  Peter  couldn't  say  ''  yes '' 
for  that  would  be  an  untruth,  and 
whatever  faults  Peter  may  have,  he 
is  at  least  truthful.  So  he  just  pre- 
tended not  to  have  heard  Sammy's 
question. 

Now  when  Sammy  had  asked  the 
question  he  had  thought  nothing 
about  it.  It  had  just  popped  into 
his  head  by  way  of  something  to 


138  MRS.   PETER  RABBIT 

say.  But  Sammy  Jay  is  sliarp,  and 
he  noticed  right  away  that  Peter 
didn't  answer  but  began  to  talk 
about  other  things. 

^'  Ha,  ha  ! ''  thought  Sammy  to 
himself,  "  I  believe  he  didn't  come 
alone.  I  wonder  now  if  he  brought 
Miss  Fuzzytail  with  him.'' 

Right  away  Sammy  began  to 
peer  down  into  the  Old  Briar-patch, 
twistino;  and  turning;  so  that  he 
could  see  in  every  direction,  and  all 
the  time  talking  as  fast  as  his  tongue 
could  go.  Two  or  three  times  he 
flew  out  over  the  Old  Briar-patch, 
pretending  to  try  to  catch  moths, 
but  really  so  that  he  could  look 
down  into  certain  hiding-places. 
The  last  time  that  he  did  this  he 
spied  little  Mrs.  Peter,  who  was, 


SAMMY  JAY  BECOMES  CURIOUS    139 

you  know,  Miss  Fuzzytail.  At  once 
Sammy  Jay  started  for  the  Green 
Forest,  screaming  at  the  top  of  his 
voice : 

^^ Peter  Rabbit's  married!    Peter 
Rabbit's  married!" 


CHAPTER   XXm 

PETER  INTRODUCES  MRS.  PETER 

It's  what  you  do  for  others. 

Not  what  they  do  for  you, 
That  makes  you  feel  so  happy 

All  through  and  through  and  through. 

Peter  Rabbit. 

Peter  Rabbit  made  a  wry  face 
as  lie  listened  to  Sammy  Jay  shriek- 
ing at  the  top  of  his  voice  as  he 
flew  through  the  Green  Forest  and 
over  the  Green  Meadows,  ''  Peter 
Rabbit's  married  ! ''  ''  Peter  Rab- 
bit's married  ! ''  He  saw  the  Merry 
Little  Breezes  who,  you  know,  are 
the  children  of  Old  Mother  West 
Wind,  start  for  the  dear  Old  Briar- 
patch  as  soon  as  they  heard  Sammy 


PETER  INTRODUCES  MRS.  PETER   141 

Jay,  and  he  knew  that  they  would 
be  only  the  first  of  a  lot  of  visitors. 
He  hvirried  to  where  Mrs.  Peter 
was  hiding  under  a  sweet-briar  bush. 

''  Do  you  hear  what  that  mischief- 
maker,  Sammy  Jay,  is  screaming  ?  ^^ 
asked  Peter. 

Mrs.  Peter  nodded.  ''  Don't  — 
don't  you  think  it  sounds  kind  of 
—  well,  kind  of  nice,  Peter  ? ''  she 
asked  in  a  bashful  sort  of  way. 

Peter  chuckled.  "  It  sounds 
more  than  kind  of  nice  to  me,'' 
said  he.  "  Do  you  know,  I  used 
to  think  that  Sammy  Jay  never  did 
and  never  could  say  anything  nice, 
but  I've  just  changed  my  mind. 
Though  he  isn't  saying  it  to  be 
nice,  it  reallv  is  the  nicest  thino; 
I've    ever    heard    him    say.       We 


142  MRS.   PETER  RABBIT 

haven't  been  able  to  keep  our 
secret,  so  I  think  the  very  best 
thing  we  can  do  is  to  invite  every- 
body to  call.  Then  we  can  get  it 
over  with  and  have  a  little  time  to 
ourselves.  Here  come  the  Merry 
Little  Breezes,  and  I  know  that 
they  will  be  glad  to  take  the  in- 
vitations for  us/^ 

Mrs.  Peter  agreed,  for  she 
thought  that  anything  Peter  did 
or  suggested  was  just  about  right. 
So  the  Merry  Little  Breezes  were 
soon  skipping  and  dancing  over  the 
Green  Meadows  and  through  the 
Green  Forest  with  this  message : 

''  Mr.  and  Mrs.  Peter  Rabbit  will 
be  at  home  in  the  Old  Briar-patch 
to  their  friends  to-morrow  after- 
noon at  shadow-time.^^ 


PETER  INTRODUCES  MRS.  PETER    143 

"  Why  did  you  make  it  at 
shadow-time  ?  ^'   asked  Mrs.  Peter. 

^'  Because  that  will  give  all  our 
friends  a  chance  to  come/^  replied 
Peter.  ''  Those  who  sleep  through 
the  day  will  have  waked  up,  and 
those  who  sleep  through  the  night 
will  not  have  gone  to  bed.  Be- 
sides,  it  will  be  safer  for  some  of 
the  smallest  of  them  if  the  Black 
Shadows  are  about  for  them  to  hide 
in  on  their  way  here.'' 

^^How  thoughtful  you  are,''  said 
little  Mrs.  Peter  with  a  little  sigh 
of  happiness. 

Of  course,  every  one  who  could 
walk,  creep,  or  fly  headed  for  the 
Old  Briar-patch  the  next  day  at 
shadow-time,  for  almost  every  one 
knows  and  loves  Peter  Rabbit,  and 


144  MRS.   PETER  RABBIT 

of  course  every  one  was  very  anx- 
ious to  meet  Mrs.  Peter.  From 
the  Smiling  Pool  came  Billy  Mink, 
Little  Joe  Otter,  Jerry  Muskrat, 
Spotty  the  Turtle,  and  old  Grand- 
father Frog.  From  the  Green 
Forest  came  Bobby  Coon,  Unc^ 
Billy  Possum  and  Mrs.  Possum, 
Prickly  Porky  the  Porcupine, 
Whitefoot  the  Woodmouse,  Happy 
Jack  the  Gray  Squirrel,  Chatterer 
the  Red  Squirrel,  Blacky  the  Crow, 
Sammy  Jay,  01'  Mistah  Buzzard, 
Mistah  Mockingbird,  and  Sticky- 
toes  the  Treetoad.  From  the 
Green  Meadows  came  Danny 
Meadow  Mouse,  Old  Mr.  Toad, 
Digger  the  Badger,  Jimmy  Skunk, 
and  Striped  Chipmunk,  who  lives 
near    the    old    stone-wall    between 


PETER  INTRODUCES  MRS.  PETER    145 

the  edge  of  the  Green  Meadows 
and  the  Green  Forest.  Johnny 
and  Polly  Chuck  came  down  from 
the  Old  Orchard  and  Drummer  the 
Woodpecker  came  from  the  same 
place. 

Of  course  Old  Man  Coyote  paid 
his  respects,  and  when  he  came 
everybody  but  Prickly  Porky  and 
Digger  the  Badger  and  Jimmy 
Skunk  made  way  for  him  with 
great  respect.  Granny  and  Reddy 
Fox  and  Hooty  the  Owl  didn't  call, 
but  they  sat  where  they  could  look 
on  and  make  fun.  You  see,  Peter 
had  fooled  all  three  so  many  times 
that  they  felt  none  too  friendly. 

Very  proud  looked  Peter  as  he 
stood  under  a  bramble-bush  with 
Mrs.   Peter  by  his  side  and  intro- 


146  MRS.   PETER  RABBIT 

duced  her  to  liis  many  friends,  and 
very  sweet  and  modest  and  retiring 
looked  little  Mrs.  Peter  as  she  sat 
beside  him.  Everybody  said  that 
she  was  ''  too  sweet  for  anything  ^\ 
and  when  Reddy  Fox  overheard 
that  remark  he  grinned  and  said : 

'^  Not  for  me  !  She  can't  be  too 
sweet  for  me,  and  I  hope  Til  have 
a  chance  to  find  out  just  how  sweet 
she  is.'" 

What  do  you  suppose  he  meant  ? 


CHAPTER   XXIY 

DANNY  MEADOW  MOUSE  WARNS  PETER 

RABBIT 

Good  advice  is  always  needed 
But,  alas  !   is  seldom  heeded. 

Peter  Rabbit, 

Dakc^y  Meadow  Mouse  waited 
until  all  the  rest  of  Peter  Rabbit's 
friends  had  left  tbe  Old  Briar-patcli 
after  paying  their  respects  to  Peter 
and  Mrs.  Peter.  He  waited  for 
two  reasons,  did  Danny  Meadow 
Mouse.  In  the  first  place,  he  had 
seen  old  Granny  Fox  and  Reddy 
Fox  hanging  about  a  little  way  off, 
and  though  they  had  disappeared 
after  a  while,  Danny  had  an  idea 
that  they  were  not  far  away,  but 


148  MRS.   PETER  RABBIT 

were  hiding  so  that  they  might 
catch  him  on  his  way  home.  Of 
course,  he  hadn't  the  slightest  in- 
tention  of  giving  them  the  chance. 
He  had  made  up  his  mind  to  ask 
Peter  if  he  might  spend  the  night 
in  a  corner  of  the  Old  Briar-patch, 
and  he  was  very  sure  that  Peter 
would  say  he  might,  for  he  and 
Peter  are  very  good  friends,  very 
good  friends  indeed. 

The  second  good  reason  Danny 
had  for  waiting  w^as  this  very 
friendship.  You  see,  Peter  had 
been  away  from  the  Green  Meadows 
so  long  that  Danny  felt  sure  he 
couldn't  know  all  about  how  things 
were  there  now,  and  so  he  wanted 
to  warn  Peter  that  the  Green 
Meadows  were  not  nearly  as  safe 


MEADOW  MOUSE  WARNS  PETER    149 

as  before  Old  Man  Coyote  had 
come  there  to  live.  So  Danny 
waited,  and  when  all  the  rest  of 
the  callers  had  left  he  called  Peter 
to  one  side  where  little  Mrs.  Peter 
couldn't  hear.  Danny  stood  up 
on  his  hind  legs  so  as  to  whisper 
in  one  of  Peter's  ears. 

"  Do  you  know  that  Old  Man 
Coyote  is  the  most  dangerous 
enemy  we  have,  Peter  Rabbit  ? 
Do  you  knoAv  that  ? ''  he  asked. 

Peter  Rabbit  shook  his  head.  "  I 
don't  believe  that,  Danny,"  said 
he.  "  His  terrible  voice  has  fright- 
ened you  so  that  you  just  think  him 
as  bad  as  he  sounds.  Why,  Old 
Man  Coyote  is  a  friend  of  mine." 

Then  he  told  Danny  how  Old 
Man  Coyote  had  done  him  a  good 


150  MRS.   PETER  RABBIT 

turn  in  the  Old  Pasture  in  return 
for  a  good  turn  Peter  liad  once 
done  liim,  and  how  he  said  that  he 
always  paid  his  debts. 

Danny  Meadow  Mouse  looked 
doubtful.  ''  Wliat  else  did  he 
say  ?  ^^  he  demanded.  ''  Nothing, 
excepting  that  we  were  even  now/^ 
replied   Peter. 

''  Ha  ! ''  said  Danny  Meadow 
Mouse. 

The  way  he  said  it  made  Peter 
turn  to  look  at  him  sharply. 

''  Ha  !  ^^  said  Danny  again.  "  If 
you  are  even,  why  you  don't  owe 
him  anything,  and  he  doesn't  owe 
you  anything.  Watch  out,  Peter 
Rabbit !  Watch  out !  I  would 
stick  pretty  close  to  the  Old  Briar- 
patch   with   Mrs.    Peter   if  I  were 


MEADOW  MOUSE  WARNS  PETER    151 

you.  I  would  indeed.  You  used 
to  think  old  Granny  Fox  pretty 
smart,  but  Old  Man  Coyote  is 
smarter.  Yes,  Sir,  lie  is  smarter  ! 
And  every  one  of  tlie  rest  of  us 
has  got  to  be  smarter  than  ever 
before  to  keep  out  of  his  clutches. 
Watch  out,  Peter  Rabbit,  if  you 
and  Old  Man  Coyote  are  even. 
Now,  if  you  don't  mind.  Til  curl 
up  in  my  old  hiding-place  for  the 
night.  I  really  don't  dare  go  back 
home  to-night.'' 

Of  course  Peter  told  Danny 
Meadow  Mouse  that  he  was  wel- 
come to  spend  the  night  in  the 
Old  Briar-patch,  and  thanked 
Danny  for  his  warning  as  he  bade 
him  o;ood-nio;ht.  But  Peter  never 
carries  his  troubles  with    him    for 


152  MRS.   PETER   RABBIT 

long,  and  by  the  time  he  had  re- 
joined little  Mrs.  Peter  he  was  very 
much  inclined  to  laugh  at  Danny^s 
fear. 

"  What  did  that  funny  little 
Meadow  Mouse  have  to  say?^^ 
asked  Mrs.  Peter. 

Peter  told  her  and  then  added, 
"  But  I  don't  believe  we  have  anv- 
thing  to  fear  from  Old  Man  Coyote. 
You  know  he  is  my  friend.^' 

"  But  I  don't  know  that  he  is 
mine ! ''  replied  little  Mrs.  Peter, 
and  the  way  she  said  it  made 
Peter  look  at  her  anxiously.  "  I 
believe  Danny  Meadow  Mouse  is 
right,''  she  continued.  "  Oh,  Peter, 
you  will  watch  out,  won't  you  ?" 

And  Peter  promised  her  that  he 
would. 


CHAPTER   XXV 

PETER  RABBIT'S  HEEDLESSNESS 

Heedlessness  is  just  the  twin  of  thoughtless- 
ness, you  know, 

And  where  you  find  them  both  at  once,  there 
trouble's  sure  to  grow. 

Peter  Rabbit, 

Peter  Rabbit  didn't  mean  to 
be  heedless.  No,  indeed  !  Oh,  my, 
no !  Peter  thought  so  much  of 
Mrs.  Peter,  he  meant  to  be  so 
thoughtful  that  she  never  would 
have  a  thing  to  worry  about.  But 
Peter  was  heedless.  He  always 
was  heedless.  This  is  the  worst 
of  a  bad  habit  —  you  can  try  to  let 
go  of  it,  but  it  wonH  let  go  of  you. 


154  MRS.   PETER  RABBIT 

So  It  was  with  Peter.  He  had 
been  heedless  so  long  that  now  he 
actually  didn't  know  when  he  was 
heedless. 

When  there  was  nobody  but 
himself  to  think  about,  and  no  one 
to  worry  about  him,  his  heedless- 
ness didn't  so  much  matter.  If 
anything  had  happened  to  him 
then,  there  would  have  been  no 
one  to  suffer.  But  now  all  this 
was  changed.  You  see,  there  was 
little  Mrs.  Peter.  At  first  Peter 
had  been  perfectly  content  to  stay 
with  her  in  the  dear  Old  Briar- 
patch.  He  had  led  her  through 
all  his  private  little  paths,  and 
they  had  planned  where  they  would 
make  two  or  three  more.  He  had 
showed  her   all  his  secret  hiding- 


PETER  RABBIT'S  HEEDLESSNESS   155 

places  and  the  shortest  way  to 
the  sweet-clover  patch.  He  had 
pointed  ovit  where  the  Lone  Little 
Path  came  down  to  the  edge  of  the 
Green  Forest  and  so  out  on  to  the 
Green  Meadows.  He  had  shown 
her  where  the  Crooked  Little  Path 
came  down  the  hill.  Little  Mrs. 
Peter  had  been  delighted  with 
everything,  and  not  once  had  she 
complained  of  being  homesick  for 
the  Old  Pasture. 

But  after  a  little  while  Peter 
began  to  get  uneasy.  You  see  in 
the  days  before  Old  Man  Coyote 
had  come  to  live  on  the  Green 
Meadows,  Peter  had  come  and  gone 
about  as  he  pleased.  Of  course  he 
had  had  to  watch  out  for  Granny 
and  Reddy  Fox,  but  he  had  had  to 


156  MRS.   PETER  RABLIT 

watch  out  for  them  ever  since  he 
was  a  babj,  so  he  didn^t  fear  them 
very  much  in  spite  of  their  smart- 
ness. He  felt  quite  as  smart  as 
they  and  perhaps  a  little  bit 
smarter.  Anyway,  they  never  had 
caught  him,  and  he  didn't  believe 
they  ever  would.  So  he  had  come 
and  gone  as  he  pleased,  and  poked 
his  nose  into  everybody's  business, 
and  gossiped  with  everybody. 

Of  course  it  was  quite  natural 
that  Peter  should  want  to  call  on 
all  his  old  friends  and  visit  the 
Green  Forest,  the  Old  Orchard,  the 
Laughing  Brook,  and  the  Smil- 
ing Pool.  Probably  Mrs.  Peter 
wouldn't  have  worried  very  much 
if  it  hadn't  been  for  the  warning 
left    by    Danny    Meadow    Mouse. 


PETER  RABBIT'S  HEEDLESSNESS  157 

Danny  had  said  that  Old  Man 
Coyote  was  more  to  be  feared  than 
all  the  Hawk  family  and  all  the 
Fox  family  together,  because  he 
was  smarter  and  slyer  than  any  of 
them.  At  first  Peter  had  looked 
very  serious,  but  after  Danny  had 
gone  back  to  his  own  home  Peter 
had  laughed  at  Danny  for  being  so 
afraid,  and  he  began  to  o^o  farther 
and  farther  away  from  the  safe  Old 
Briar-patch. 

One  day  he  had  ventured  as  far 
as  halfway  up  the  Crooked  Little 
Path.  He  was  thinkino;  so  hard 
of  a  surprise  he  was  planning  for 
little  Mrs.  Peter  that  he  foro^ot  to 
watch  out  and  almost  ran  into  Old 
Man  Coyote  before  he  saw  him. 
There  was  a  hungry  look,  such  a 


158  MRS.   PETER  RABBIT 

hungry  look  in  Old  Man  Coyote^ s 
eyes  as  lie  grinned  and  said  "  Good 
morning  ^^  that  Peter  didn't  even 
stop  to  be  polite.  He  remembered 
that  Jimmy  Skunk's  old  house  was 
near,  and  he  reached  it  just  one 
jump  ahead  of  Old  Man  Coyote. 

"  I  thought  you  said  that  we  were 
friends/'  panted  Peter,  as  he  heard 
Mr.  Coyote  sniffing  at  the  doorway. 

^'  So  we  were  until  I  had  paid 
my  debt  to  you.  Now  that  I've 
paid  that,  we  are  even,  and  it  is 
everybody  watch  out  for  himself," 
replied  Old  Man  Coyote.  ''But 
don't  forget  that  I  always  pay  my 
debts,  Peter  Rabbit." 


CHAPTER   XXVI 

PETER  RABBIT  LISTENS  TO  MRS.  PETER 

Safety  first  is  a  wise  rule  for  those  who 

would  live  long. 

Peter  Rabbit. 

Petee  Rabbit  was  glad  enouo-h 
to  get  back  to  the  dear  Old  Briar- 
patch  after  his  narrow  escape  from 
Old  Man  Coyote  by  dodging  into 
Jimmy  Skunk's  old  house  halfway 
up  the  hill.  And  little  Mrs.  Peter 
was  glad  enough  to  have  him, 
you  may  be  sure.  She  had  been 
watchino;  Peter  when  he  so  heed- 
lessly  almost  ran  into  Old  Man 
Coyote,  and  it  had  seemed  to  her 
as    if   her    heart    stopped    beating 


160  MRS.   PETER  RABBIT 

until  Peter  reached  the  safety  of 
that  old  house  of  Jhnmy  Skunk 
just  one  jump  ahead.  Then  she 
saw  Old  Man  Coyote  hide  in  the 
grass  near  by  and  she  was  terribly, 
terribly  afraid  that  Peter  would  be 
heedless  again  and  come  out,  think- 
ing  that  Mr.  Coyote  had  gone. 

Poor  little  Mrs.  Peter!  She 
was  so  anxious  that  she  couldn't 
sit  still.  She  felt  that  she  just 
had  to  do  somethino;  to  warn 
Peter.  She  stole  out  from  the 
dear  Old  Briar-patch  and  halfway 
to  where  Old  Man  Coyote  was 
hiding.  He  was  so  busy  watching 
the  doorway  of  the  old  house 
where  Peter  was  hidino;  that  he 
didn't  notice  her  at  all.  Little 
Mrs.   Peter  found  a  bunch  of  tall 


PETER  LISTENS  TO  MRS.  PETER    161 

grass  behind  which  she  could  sit 
up  and  still  not  be  seen.  So  there 
she  sat  Avithout  mo  vino;  for  a  long;, 
long  time,  never  once  taking  her 
eyes  from  Old  Man  Coyote  and 
the  doorway  of  the  old  house.  By 
and  by  she  saw  Peter  poke  his 
nose  out  to  see  if  the  way  w^as 
clear.  Old  Man  Coyote  saw  him 
too,  and  began  to  grin.  It  was  a 
hungry,  wicked-looking  grin,  and 
it  made  little  Mrs.  Peter  very^ 
very  angry  indeed. 

She  waited  just  a  minute  longer 
to  make  sure  that  Peter  was  where 
he  could  see  her,  and  then  she 
thumped  the  ground  very  hard, 
which,  you  know,  is  the  way 
Rabbits  sio^nal  to  each  other. 
Peter    heard    it    right    away    and 


162  MRS.   PETER  RABBIT 

thumped  back  that  he  would  stay 
riffht  where  he  was,  though  right 
down  in  his  heart  Peter  thought 
that  little  Mrs.  Peter  was  just 
nervous  and  foolish,  for  he  was 
sure  that  Old  Man  Coyote  had 
given  up  and  gone  away  long  ago. 
Now  of  course  Old  Man  Coyote 
heard  those  thumps,  and  he  knew 
just  what  they  meant.  He  knew 
that  he  never,  never  could  catch 
Peter  so  long  as  Mrs.  Peter  was 
watching  him  and  ready  to  warn 
Peter.  So  he  came  out  of  his 
hiding-place  with  an  ugly  snarl 
and  sprang  toward  little  Mrs.  Peter 
just  to  frighten  her.  He  laughed 
as  he  watched  her  run  and,  all 
breathless,  dive  into  the  dear, 
safe  Old  Briar-patch,  and  then  he 


PETER  LISTENS  TO  MRS.  PETER    163 

trotted  away  to  his  favorite  napping- 
place. 

As  soon  as  Peter  was  sure  tliat 
he  was  safe  he  started  for  home,  and 
there  little  Mrs.  Peter  scolded  him 
soundly  for  being  so  heedless  and 
thouo;htless. 

Peter  didn^t  have  a  word  to  say. 
For  a  lono;  time  he  sat  thinking 
and  thinking,  every  once  in  a  while 
scratching  his  head  as  if  puzzled. 
Little  Mrs.   Peter  noticed  it. 

^^  Whaf  s  the  matter  with  you, 
Peter  ?  ^^   she  asked  finally. 

^^Pm  just  studying  what  Old 
Man  Coyote  means  by  telling  me 
one  day  that  he  is  my  friend,  and 
proving  it  by  doing  me  a  good 
turn,  and  then  trying  to  catch  me 
the  very  next  time  he  sees  me.      I 


164  MRS.   PETER  RiVBBIT 

don't  understand  it/'  said  Peter, 
sliakino;  his  head. 

"  Oh,  you  dear  old  stupid  ! ''  re- 
plied little  Mrs.  Peter.  ''  Now, 
you  listen  to  me.  You  did  Old 
Man  Coyote  a  good  turn  and  he 
paid  you  back  by  doing  you  a 
good  turn.  That  made  you  even, 
didn't  it?" 

Peter  nodded. 

"  Well,  then  you  are  right  back 
where  you  started  from,  and  Old 
Man  Coyote  doesn't  see  any  reason 
why  he  should  treat  you  any 
diflferently  than  at  first,  and  I 
don't  see  why  he  should  either, 
when  I  come  to  think  it  over.  I 
tell  you  what,  Peter,  the  thing  for 
you  to  do  is  to  keep  doing  good 
turns  to   Old  Man  Coyote  so  that 


"Ah,  you  dear  old  stupid!"  replied  little  Mrs. 

Peter.     Page  164. 


PETER  LISTENS  TO  MRS.  PETER    165 

he  will  always  be  in  debt  to  you. 
Then  he  will  always  be  your 
friend/' 

As  little  Mrs.  Peter  stopped 
speaking,  Peter  sprang  to  his  feet. 
"  The  very  thing  !  ^'  he  cried.  "  It's 
sort  of  a  Golden  Rule,  and  I  do 
believe  it  will  work.'' 

"  Of  course  it  will/'  replied 
little  Mrs.  Peter. 


CHAPTER   XXVn 

MISTAH  MOCKER  PLAYS  A  JOKE  ON 
MRS.  PETER 

This  little  point  remember,  please  — 
There's  little  gained  by  those  who  tease. 

Peter  Rabbit. 

MiSTAH  Mocker  the  Mocking- 
bird had  been  very  late  in  coming 
up  to  the  Green  Meadows  from 
way  down  South.  The  truth  is, 
he  had  almost  decided  not  to  come. 
You  see,  he  loves  the  sunny  south- 
land so  much,  and  all  who  live  there 
love  him  so  much,  that  if  it  hadn^t 
been  for  Unc'  Billy  Possum  and  Or 
Mistah  Buzzard  he  never,  never 
would    have    thought    of    leaving. 


MIST  AH  MOCKER  PLAYS  A  JOKE     1G7 

even  for  a  little  while.  Unc'  Billv 
and  or  Mistali  Buzzard  are  partic- 
ular friends  of  his,  very  particular 
friends,  and  lie  felt  that  he  just 
had  to  come  up  for  a  little  visit. 

Now  Mistah  Mocker  reached  the 
Green  Meadows  just  after  Peter 
Rabbit  had  brought  little  Mrs. 
Peter  down  from  the  Old  Pasture 
to  live  with  him  in  the  dear  Old 
Briar-patch.  He  knew  that  little 
Mrs.  Peter  didn  t  know  anything 
about  him,  for  he  never  had  visited 
the  Old  Pasture  where  she  had 
spent  her  life.  But  he  knew  all 
the  bird  people  who  do  live  there, 
for  he  had  met  them  in  the  sunny 
southland,  where  they  spent  the 
winter. 

^'  I   believe   Til  go   pay  my  re- 


168  MRS.   PETER  RABBIT 

spects  to  Mrs.  Peter/'  said  Mistah 
Mocker  one  clay,  winking  at  OV 
Mistah  Buzzard.  OV  Mistah  Buz- 
zard chuckled  and  winked  back. 

''  All  cert'nly  hopes  yo'all  will 
behave  yo'self  right  proper  and  not 
forget  that  yo'  is  a  member  of  one 
of  the  oldest  families  in  the  Souf/' 
said  he, 

Mistah  Mocker  looked  quite 
solemn  as  he  promised  to  behave 
himself,  but  there  was  a  twinkle  in 
his  eyes  as  he  flew  toward  the  Old 
Briar-patch.  There  he  hid  in  a 
thick  tangle  of  vines.  Now  it  hap- 
pened that  Peter  Rabbit  had  gone 
over  to  the  sweet-clover  patch,  and 
little  Mrs.  Peter  was  quite  alone. 
Somehow^  she  got  to  thinking;  of 
her  old  home,  and  for  the  first  time 


MISTAH  MOCKER  PLAYS  A  JOKE     169 

she  began  to  feel  just  a  wee,  wee 
bit  homesick.  It  was  just  then 
that  she  heard  a  familiar  voice. 
Little  Mrs.  Teter  pricked  up  her 
ears  and  smiled  happily. 

^^  That^s  the  voice  of  Tommy  Tit 
the  Chickadee,  and  it  must  be  that 
his  wife  is  with  him,  for  I  hear  him 
callino;  '  Phoebe  !  Phoebe  !  ^  How 
lovely  of  them  to  come  down  to  see 
me  so  soon.^' 

Just  then  she  heard  another 
voice,  a  deep,  beautiful,  ringing 
voice,  a  voice  that  she  loved.  It 
was  the  voice  of  Yeery  the  Thrush. 
''  Oh  ! ''  cried  little  Mrs.  Peter,  and 
then  held  her  breath  so  as  not  to 
miss  one  note  of  the  beautiful  song. 
Hardly  had  the  song  ended  when 
she    heard    the    familiar    voice    of 


170  MRS.   PETER  RABBIT 

Redeye  tlie  Yireo.  Little  Mrs. 
Peter  clapped  lier  hands  happily. 
"  It  must  be  a  surprise  party  by 
my  old  friends  and  neighbors  of 
the  Old  Pasture  !  ^'  she  cried. 
"  How  good  of  them  to  come  way 
down  here,  and  how  glad  I  shall 
be  to  see  them  !  '^ 

With  that  little  Mrs.  Peter  hur- 
ried over  to  the  tangle  of  vines 
from  which  all  the  voices  seemed 
to  come  and  eagerly  peered  this 
way  and  that  way  for  a  sight  of 
her  friends.  But  all  she  saw  was 
a  stranger  wearing  a  very  sober- 
colored  suit.  He  was  very  polite 
and  told  her  that  he  was  an  old 
friend  of  Peter  Rabbit. 

''  If  you  are  a  friend  of  Peter, 
then   you   are   a  friend   of  mine/^ 


MISTAH  MOCKER  PLAYS  A  JOKE     171 

said  little  Mrs.  Peter  very  prettily. 
'^  Have  jou  seen  anybody  in  this 
tangle  of  vines  since  you  arrived  ? 
I  am  sure  some  friends  of  mine  are 
here,  but  I  haven^t  been  able  to 
find  them.'' 

''  No/'  said  the  stranger,  who 
was,  of  course,  Mistah  Mocker  the 
Mockingbird.  "  I  haven't  seen  any 
one  here,  and  I  don't  think  there 
has  been  any  one  here  but  myself." 

''  Oh,  yes,  indeed  there  has  !  " 
cried  little  Mrs.  Peter.  "  I  heard 
their  voices,  and  I  couldn't  possibly 
be  mistaken  in  those,  especially 
the  beautiful  voice  of  Veery  the 
Thrush.  I  —  I  would  like  very 
much  to  find  them." 

Mistah  Mocker  had  the  o;race  to 
look  ashamed  of  himself  when  he 


172  MRS.   PETER  RABBIT 

saw  liow  disappointed  little  Mrs. 
Peter  was.  Very  softly  he  began 
to  sing  tlie  song  of  Veery  the 
Thrush. 

Little  Mrs.  Peter  looked  up 
quickly.  ''  There  it  is  !  ^^  she 
cried.  ''  There  ^^  —  she  stopped 
with  her  mouth  gaping  wide  open. 
She  suddenly  realized  that  it  was 
Mistah  Mocker  who  was  singing. 

"\  —  Tm  very  sorry/ ^  he  stam- 
mered. ''I  did  it  just  for  a  joke 
and  not  to  make  you  feel  bad. 
Will  you  forgive  me  ?  '^ 

"  Yes/'  replied  little  Mrs.  Peter, 
"  if  you  will  come  here  often  at 
shadow-time  and  sing  to  me.'' 
And  Mistah  Mocker  promised  that 
he  would. 


CHAPTER   XXVIII 

NEWS    FROM    THE    OLD    BRIAR-PATCH 

To  use  your  eyes  is  very  wise 
And  much  to  be  commended ; 

But  never  see  what  cannot  be 
For  such  as  you  intended. 

Peter  Rabbit. 

Jeishsty  Wrei^  is  a  busybody. 
Yes,  Sir,  she  certainly  is  a  busy- 
body. K  there  is  anything  going 
on  in  her  neio;hborhood  that  she 
doesn't  know  about,  it  isn't  because 
she  doesn't  try  to  find  out.  She 
is  so  small  and  spry  that  it  is  hard 
work  to  keep  track  of  her,  and 
she  pops  out  at  the  most  un- 
expected times  and  places.      Then, 


174  MRS.   PETER  RABBIT 

before  you  can  saj  a  word,  slie 
is  gone. 

And  in  all  the  Old  Orcliard  or 
on  the  Green  Meadows  there  is 
not  to  be  found  another  tongue 
so  busy  as  that  of  Jenny  Wren. 
It  is  sharp  sometimes^  but  when 
she  wants  it  to  be  so  there  is  none 
smoother.  You  see  she  is  a  great 
gossip,  is  Jenny  \Yren,  a  great 
gossip.  But  if  you  get  on  the 
right  side  of  Jenny  Wren  and  ask 
her  to  keep  a  secret,  she'll  do  it. 
No  one  knows  how  to  keep  a 
secret  better  than  she  does. 

How  it  happened  nobody  knows, 
but  it  did  happen  that  when  Peter 
Rabbit  came  home  to  the  dear  Old 
Briar-patch,  bringing  Mrs.  Peter 
with  him^  Jenny  AYren  didn't  hear 


NEWS  FROM  THE  BRIAR-PATCH    175 

about  it.  Probably  it  was  because 
the  new  home  which  she  had  just 
completed  was  so  carefully  hidden 
that  the  messengers  sent  by  Peter 
to  invite  all  his  friends  to  call 
didn^t  find  it,  and  afterward  she 
was  so  busy  with  household  affairs 
that  she  didn^t  have  time  to  gossip. 
Anyway,  Peter  had  been  back  some 
time  before  Jenny  Wren  knew  it. 
She  was  quite  upset  to  think  that 
she  was  the  last  to  hear  the  news, 
but  she  consoled  herself  with  the 
thought  that  she  had  been  attend- 
ing strictly  to  her  duties,  and  now 
that  her  children  were  able  to  look 
out  for  themselves  she  could  make 
up  for  lost  time. 

Just   as   soon  as   she  could  get 
away,     she    started    for    the    Old 


176  MRS.   PETER  RABBIT 

Briar-patch.  She  wanted  to  hear 
all  about  Peter's  adventures  in  the 
Old  Pasture  and  to  meet  Mrs. 
Peter.  But  like  a  great  many 
other  busybbdies^  she  wanted  to 
find  ou^t  all  she  could  about  Peter's 
affairs,  and  she  thought  that  the 
surest  way  to  do  it  was  not  to  let 
Peter  know  that  she  was  about 
until  she  had  had  a  chance  to  use 
her  sharp  little  eyes  all  she  wanted 
to.  So  when  she  reached  the  Old 
Briar-patch,  she  didn't  make  a 
sound.  It  didn't  take  her  long  to 
find  Peter.  He  was  sittins:  under 
one  of  his  favorite  bramble-bushes 
smilino*  to  himself.  He  smiled 
and  smiled  until  Jenny  Wren  had 
to  bite  her  tongue  to  keep  from 
asking  what  was  pleasing  him  so. 


NEWS  FROM  THE  BRIAR-PATCH    177 

''  He  looks  tickled  almost  to 
deatli  over  something,  but  very 
likely  if  I  sliould  ask  him  what 
it  is  he  wouldn't  tell  me/'  thought 
Jenny  Wren.  "  I  guess  Til  look 
around  a  bit  first.  1  wonder  where 
Mrs.  Peter  is.'' 

So  leaving  Peter  to  smile  to  his 
heart's  content,  she  went  peeking 
and  peering  through  the  Old 
Briar-patch.  Of  course  it  wasn't 
a  nice  thing  to  do,  not  a  bit  nice. 
But  Jenny  Wren  didn't  stop  to 
think  of  that.  By  and  by  she  saw 
something  that  made  her  flutter  all 
over  with  excitement.  She  looked 
and  looked  until  she  could  sit  still 
no  lon^rer.  Then  she  hurried  back 
to  where  Peter  was  sitting.  He 
was  still  smiling. 


178  MRS.   PETER  RABBIT 

^'  Oh,  Peter  Rabbit,  it's  perfectly 
lovely  !  '^  sbe  cried. 

Peter  looked  up  quickly,  and  a 
worried  look  chased  the  smile 
away.  "  Hello,  Jenny  Wren ! 
Where  did  you  come  from  ?  I 
haven't  seen  you  since  I  got  back,'' 
said  he. 

''  I've  been  so  busy  that  I  haven't 
had  time  to  call  before,"  replied 
Jenny.  "  I  know  what  you've 
been  smiling  about,  Peter,  and  it's 
perfectly  splendid.  Has  everybody 
heard  the  news  ?  " 

''  No,"  said  Peter,  ''  nobody 
knows  it  but  you,  and  I  don't 
want  anybody  else  to  know  it  just 
yet.  Will  you  keep  it  a  secret, 
Jenny  Wren  ?  " 

Now    Jenny    was   just    bursting 


NEWS  FROM  THE  BRIAR-PATCH    179 

with  desire  to  spread  the  news, 
but  Peter  looked  so  anxious  that 
finally  she  promised  that  she  would 
keep  it  to  herself,  and  she  really 
meant  to.  But  though  Peter 
looked  greatly  relieved  as  he 
watched  her  start  for  home,  he 
didnH  smile  as  he  had  before.  "  I 
wish  her  tongue  didn^t  wag  so 
much/^   said  he. 


CHAPTER   XXIX 

JIMMY   SKUNK   VISITS   PETER   RABBIT 

It's  hard  to  keep  a  secret  which  you  fairly  ache 

to  tell ; 

So  not  to  know  such  secrets  is  often  quite  as 

well. 

Peter  Rabbit 

Oi^  her  way  home  from  the  Old 
Briar-patch,  Jenny  Wren  stopped 
to  rest  in  a  bush  beside  the  Crooked 
Little  Path  that  comes  down  the 
hill,  when  who  should  come  along 
but  Jimmy  Skunk.  Now  just  as 
usual  Jenny  Wren  was  fidgeting 
and  fussing  about,  and  Jimmy 
Skunk  grinned  as  he  watched  her. 

^^  Hello,  Jenny  Wren  ! ''  said  he, 
^^  What  are  you  doing  here  ?  ^^ 


'The  quickest  way  for  me  to  know  is  for  yo 

TO  TELL  ME,"   REPLIED  JiMMY.       Page  181. 


JIMMY  SKUNK  VISITS  PETER    181 

''  Tm  resting  on  my  way  home 
from  the  Old  Briar-patch,  if  you 
must  know,  Jimmy  Skunk !  ^^  re- 
plied Jenny  Wren,  changing  her 
position  half  a  dozen  times  while 
she  was  speaking. 

"  Ho,  ho,  ho  ! ''  laughed  Jimmy 
Skunk.  ''  Do  you  call  that  rest- 
ing !  That^s  a  joke,  Jenny  Wren. 
Resting  !  Why,  you  couldn't  sit 
still  and  rest  if  you  tried  ! '' 

^'  I  could  so  !  Tm  resting  right 
now,  so  there,  Jimmy  Skunk !  '^ 
protested  Jenny  Wren  in  a  very 
indignant  tone  of  voice,  and  hopped 
all  over  the  little  bush  while  she 
was  speaking.  ''  I  guess  if  you 
knew  what  I  know,  you'd  be  ex- 
cited too.'' 

'^  Well,  I  guess  the  quickest  way 


182  MRS.   PETER  RABBIT 

for  me  to  know  is  for  you  to  tell 
me/^  replied  Jimmy.  ^'  Tm  just 
acliino;  to  be  excited/^ 

Jimmy  grinned,  for  you  know 
Jimmy  Skunk  never  does  get  ex- 
cited and  never  hurries,  no  matter 
what  happens. 

^^  Youll  have  to  keep  right  on 
aching  then/^  replied  Jenny  Wren, 
with  a  saucy  flirt  of  her  funny  little 
tail.  "  There's  great  news  in  the 
Old  Briar-patch,  and  Tm  the  only 
one  that  knows  it,  but  Tve  prom- 
ised not  to  tell.'' 

Jimmy  pricked  up  his  ears. 
''  News  in  the  Old  Briar-patch 
must  have  somethino;  to  do  with 
Peter  Rabbit,"  said  he.  ^^  What 
has  Peter  done  now  ?  ^^ 

^'  m     never     teU !      Til    never 


JIMMY  SKUNK  VISITS  PETER    183 

tell !  ^^  cried  Jenny  Wren,  growing 
so  excited  that  it  seemed  to  Jimmy 
as  if  there  was  dano:er  that  she 
would  turn  herself  inside  out.  "  I 
promised  not  to  and  I  never  will !  '^ 
Then,  for  fear  that  she  would  in 
spite  of  herself,  she  flew  on  her 
way  home. 

Jimmy  watched  her  out  of  sight 
with  a  puzzled  frown.  ^^If  I  didn^t 
know  that  she  gets  so  terribly 
excited  over  nothing,  Td  think 
that  there  really  is  some  news  in 
the  Old  Briar-patch/^  he  muttered 
to  himself.  "  Anyway,  I  haven't 
anything  better  to  do,  so  I  believe 
rU  drop  around  that  way  and 
make  Peter  Rabbit  a  call.'' 

He  found  Peter  in  some  sweet 
clover  just  outside  the  Old  Briar- 


184  MRS.   PETER  RABBIT 

patcli,  and  it  struck  Jimmy  that 
Peter  looked  uncommonly  happy. 
He  said  as  much. 

"  I  am/^  replied  Peter ^  before  he 
thought.  Then  he  added  hastily, 
''  You  see,  Tve  been  uncommonly 
happy  ever  since  I  returned  with 
Mrs.  Peter  from  the  Old  Pasture.'^ 

"  But  I  hear  there^s  great  news 
over  here  in  the  Old  Briar-patch/^ 
persisted  Jimmy  Skunk.  "  What 
is  it,  Peter  ?  " 

Peter  pretended  to  be  very  much 
surprised.  "  Great  news  !  ^^  he  re- 
peated. "  Great  news  !  Why, 
what  news  can  there  be  over  here  ? 
Who  told  you  that  ? '' 

"  A  little  bird  told  me,''  replied 
Jimmy  slyly. 

"  It     must     have     been     Jenny 


JIMMY   SKUNK  VISITS  PETER     185 

Wren !  ^^  said  Peter,  once  more 
speaking  before  he  thought. 

"  Then  there  is  news  over  here  !  ^' 
cried  Jimmj  triumphantly.  ^^  What 
is  it,  Peter ^?  " 

But  Peter  shook  his  head  as  if 
he  hadn't  the  slio;htest  idea  and 
couldn't  imagine.  Jimmy  coaxed 
and  teased,  but  all  in  vain.  Finally 
he  started  for  home  no  wiser  than 
before. 

^'Just  the  same,  I  believe  that 
Jenny  Wren  told  the  truth  and 
that  there  is  news  over  in  the  Old 
Briar-patch,''  he  muttered  to  him- 
self. '^  Something  has  happened 
over  there,  and  Peter  won't  tell. 
I  wonder  what  it  can  be." 


CHAPTER  XXX 

REDDY  FOX  LEARNS  THE  SECRET 

Nothing  that  you  ever  do, 
Nothing  good  or  nothing  bad, 

But  has  effect  on  other  folks  — 

Gives  them  pain  or  makes  them  glad. 

Peter  Rabbit, 

Of  course  Jenny  Wren  didn^t 
mean  to  tell  the  secret  of  the 
Old  Briar-patcli,  because  she  had 
promised  Peter  Rabbit  that  she 
wouldn't.  But  she  didn't  see  any 
harm  in  telling  every  one  she  met 
that  there  was  a  secret  there,  at 
least  that  there  was  great  news 
there,  and  so,  because  Jenny  Wren 
is   a  great  gossip,   it   wasn't    long 


REDDY  FOX  LEARNS   SECRET    187 

before  all  tlie  little  people  on  the 
Green  Meadows  and  in  the  Green 
Forest  and  around  the  Smiling 
Pool  had  heard  it  and  were  won- 
dering what  the  news  could  be. 

After  Jimmy  Skunk^s  visit 
came  a  whole  string  of  visitors  to 
the  Old  Briar-patch.  One  would 
hardly  have  left  before  another 
would  appear.  Each  one  tried  to 
act  as  if  he  had  just  happened 
around  that  way  and  didnH  want 
to  pass  Peter^s  home  without  mak- 
ing a  call,  but  each  one  asked  so 
many  questions  that  Peter  knew 
what  had  really  brought  him  there 
was  the  desire  to  find  out  what 
the  news  in  the  Old  Briar-patch 
could  be.  But  Peter  was  too 
smart  for  them,  and  they  all  went 


188  MRS.   PETER  RABBIT 

away  no  wiser  than  they  came, 
that  is,  all  but  one,  and  that  one 
was  Redely  Fox. 

There  isn't  much  going  on  in 
the  Green  Forest  or  on  the  Green 
Meadows  that  Reddy  doesn't  know 
about.  He  is  sly,  is  Reddy  Fox, 
and  his  eyes  are  sharp  and  his 
ears  are  keen,  so  little  happens 
that  he  doesn't  see  or  hear  about. 
Of  course  he  heard  the  foolish 
gossip  of  Jenny  Wren  and  he 
pricked  up  his  ears. 

"  So  there's  news  down  in  the 
Old  Briar-patch,  is  there  ?  A 
secret  that  Jenny  Wren  won't 
tell?  I  think  I'll  trot  down  there 
and  make  Peter  a  call.  Of  course 
he'll  be  glad  to  see  me." 

Reddy  grinned   wickedly   as   he 


REDDY  FOX  LEARNS  SECRET    189 

said  this  to  himself,  for  he  knew 
that  there  was  no  one  for  whom 
Peter  Rabbit  had  less  love,  unless 
it  was  old   Granny  Fox. 

So  Reddy  trotted  down  to  the 
Old  Briar-patch.  Peter  saw  him 
coming  and  scowled,  for  he  guessed 
right  away  what  Reddy  was  com- 
ing for,  and  he  made  ready  to 
answer  all  Reddy ^s  questions  and 
still  tell  him  nothing,  as  he  had 
with  all  the  others  who  had  called. 

But  Reddy  asked  no  questions. 
He  didn't  once  mention  the  fact 
that  he  had  heard  there  was  news 
in  the  Old  Briar-patch.  He  didn't 
once  speak  of  Jenny  Wren.  He 
just  talked  about  the  weather  and 
the  Old  Pasture,  where  Peter  had 
made  such  a  long;  visit,  and  all  the 


190  MRS.   PETER  RABBIT 

time  was  as  pleasant  and  polite  as 
if  lie  and  Peter  were  the  dearest 
of  friends. 

But  while  he  was  talking,  Reddy 
was  using  those  sharp  eyes  and 
those  keen  ears  of  his  the  best  he 
knew  how.  But  the  Old  Briar- 
patch  Avas  very  thick,  and  he  could 
see  only  a  little  way  into  it,  and 
out  of  it  came  no  sovmd  to  hint  of 
a  secret  there.  Then  Reddy  be- 
gan to  walk  around  the  Old  Briar- 
patch  in  quite  the  most  matter- 
of-fact  way,  but  as  he  walked  that 
wonderful  nose  of  his  was  testing 
every  little  breath  of  air  that  came 
out  of  the  Old  Briar-patch.  At 
last  he  reached  a  certain  place 
where  a  little  stronger  breath  of 
air  tickled  his  nose.      He   stopped 


REDDY  FOX  LEARNS  SECRET    191 

for  a  few  minutes^  and  slowly  a 
smile  grew  and  grew.  Then,  with- 
out saying  a  word,  he  turned  and 
trotted  back  towards  the  Green 
Forest. 

Peter  Rabbit  watched  him  go. 
Then  he  joined  Mrs.  Peter  in  the 
heart  of  the  Old  Briar-patch. 
^'  My  dear/^  he  said,  with  a  sigh 
that  was  almost  a  sob,  "  Reddy 
Fox  has  found  out  our  secret.^^ 

"  Never  mind,^^  said  little  Mrs. 
Peter  brightly.  "  It  would  have 
to    be    found    out    soon,    anyway.'^ 

Trotting  back  up  the  Lone 
Little  Path,  Reddy  Fox  was  grin- 
ning broadly.  "  It  is  news  !  ^'  said 
he.  "  Jenny  Wren  was  right,  it 
is  news !  But  I  donH  believe 
anybody  else  knows  it  yet,  and  I 


192  MRS.   PETER  RABBIT 

hope  they  won't  find  it  out  right 
away,  least  of  all  Old  Man  Coyote. 
What  a  wonderful  thing  a  good 
nose  is !  It  tells  me  what  my  eyes 
cannot  see  nor  my  ears  hear/^ 


CHAPTER  XXXI 

BLACKY  THE  CROW  HAS  SHARP  EYES 

Mischief  always  waits  to  greet 
Idle  hands  and  idle  feet. 

Peter  Rabbit 

That  is  what  a  lot  of  people 
say  about  Blacky  the  Crow.  Of 
course  it  is  true  that  Blacky  does 
get  into  a  lot  of  mischief,  but  if 
people  really  knew  him  they  would 
find  that  he  isn^t  as  black  as  he 
looks.  In  fact,  Blacky  the  Crow 
does  a  whole  lot  of  good  in  his 
own  peculiar  way,  but  people  are 
always  looking  for  him  to  do  bad 
things,    and    you    know   you   most 


t 


194  MRS.   PETER  RABBIT 

always  see  wliat  you  expect  to  see. 
Thus  the  good  Blacky  does  isn^t 
seen,  while  the  bad  is,  and  so  he  has 
grown  to  have  a  reputation  blacker 
than  the  coat  he  wears. 

But  this  doesn't  worry  Blacky 
the  Crow.  No,  Sir,  it  doesn't 
worry  him  a  bit.  You  see  he  has 
grown  used  to  it.  And  then  he  is 
so  smart  that  he  is  never  afraid 
of  being;  caught  when  he  does  do 
wrong  things.  No  one  has  sharper 
eyes  than  Blacky,  and  no  one  knows 
better  how  to  use  them.  There 
is  very  little  going  on  in  the 
Green  Forest  or  on  the  Green 
Meadows  that  he  misses  when  he  is 
about. 

The  day  after  Reddy  Fox  visited 
the   Old  Briar-patch   and  with  his 


BLACKY  HAS  SHARP  EYES     195 

wonderful  nose  found  out  Peter 
Rabbit^s  secret,  Blacky  just  hap- 
pened to  fly  over  the  Old  Briar- 
patch  on  his  way  to  Farmer  Brown^s 
cornfield.  Now,  being  over  the 
Old  Briar-patch,  he  could  look 
right  down  into  it  and  see  all 
through  it.  Just  as  he  reached 
it,  he  remembered  having  heard 
Sammy  Jay  say  something  about 
gossipy  little  Jenny  Wren^s  having 
said  that  there  was  great  news 
there.  He  hadn^t  thought  much 
about  it  at  the  time,  but  now  that 
he  was  right  there,  he  might  as 
well  have  a  look  for  himself  and 
see  if  there  was  any  truth  in  it. 

So  Blacky  the  Crow  flew  a 
little  lower,  and  his  sharp  eyes 
looked     this    way    and    that    way 


196  MRS.   PETER  RABBIT 

through  all  the  bramble-bushes 
of  the  Old  Briar-patch.  He  saw 
Peter  Rabbit  right  away  and 
winked  at  him.  He  thought  Peter 
looked  worried  and  anxious. 

'^  Peter  must  have  something  on 
his  mind/^  thought  Blacky.  ^^I 
wonder  where  Mrs.   Peter  is.^^ 

Just  then  he  caught  sight  of  her 
under  the  thickest  growing  sweet- 
briar  bush.  He  had  opened  his 
mouth  to  shout,  ^^  Hello,  Mrs. 
Peter/^  when  he  saw  something 
that  surprised  him  so  that  he 
didn^t  speak  at  all.  He  almost 
forgot  to  flap  his  wings  to  keep 
himself  in  the  air.  He  hovered 
rio;ht  where  he  was  for  a  few  min- 
utes,  looking  down  through  the 
brambles.      Then    with     a     hoarse 


BLACKY  HAS  SHARP  EYES     197 

cliuckle,  he  started  for  the  Smiling 
Pool,  forgettino;  all  about  Farmer 
Brown^s  cornfield.  "  Caw^  caw, 
caw  ! ''  he  shrieked,  ''  Peter  Rab- 
bit's got  a  family  !  Peter  Rabbit's 
got  a  family  ! '' 

Reddy  Fox  heard  him  and 
ground  his  teeth.  '^Now  Old 
Man  Coyote  will  know  and  will 
try  to  catch  those  young  Rabbits, 
when  they  ought  to  be  mine  be- 
cause I  found  out  about  them 
first/'  he  grumbled. 

Jimmy  Skunk  heard  Blacky  and 
grinned  broadly.  ^^  So  that's  the 
great  news  Jenny  Wren  found 
out ! "  said  he.  ''  I  hope  Peter 
will  take  better  care  of  his  babies 
than  he  ever  has  of  himself.  I 
must  call  at  once.'^ 


198  MRS.   PETER  RABBIT 

Redtail  the  Hawk  heard,  and  lie 
smiled  too,  but  it  wasn^t  a  kindly 
smile  like  Jimmy  Skunk^s.  ^^I 
think  young  Rabbit  will  taste  very 
good  for  a  change/^  said  he. 


CHAPTER   XXXn 

PETER  RABBIT'S  NURSERY 

With  home,  the  home  you  call  your  own, 
It  really  doesn't  matter  where, 

There  is  no  place,  in  all  the  world. 
That  ever  will  or  can  compare. 

Peter  Rabbit. 

The  news  was  out  at  last, 
thanks  to  Blacky  the  Crow.  Peter 
Rabbit  had  a  family !  Yes,  Sir, 
Peter  Rabbit  had  a  family!  Right 
away  the  Old  Briar-patch  became 
the  most  interesting  place  on  the 
Green  Meadows  to  all  the  little 
people  who  live  there  and  in  the 
near-by  Green  Forest.  Of  course 
all  of  Peter's  friends  called  as  soon 


200  MRS.   PETER  RABBIT 

as  ever  tliey  could.  They  found 
Peter  looking  very  proud,  and  very 
important,  and  very  liappy.  Mrs. 
Peter  looked  just  as  proud,  and 
just  as  happy,  but  she  also  looked 
very  anxious.  You  see,  while  she 
was  very  glad  to  have  so  many 
friends  call,  there  Avere  also  other 
visitors.  That  is,  they  were  not 
exactly  callers,  but  they  hung 
around  the  outside  of  the  Old 
Briar-patch,  and  they  seemed  quite 
as  much  interested  as  the  friends 
who  really  called.  Indeed,  they 
seemed  more  interested. 

Who  were  they  ?  AVhy,  Reddy 
Fox  was  one.  Then  there  was 
Old  Man  Coyote,  also  Redtail  the 
Hawk  and  Digger  the  Badger,  and 
just    at     dusk     Hooty    the     Owl. 


PETER  RABBIT'S  NURSERY    201 

They  all  seemed  very  much  inter- 
ested indeed,  but  every  time  little 
Mrs.  Peter  saw  them,  she  shivered. 
You  see,  she  couldn^t  help  think- 
ing that  there  was  a  dreadful, 
hungry  look  in  their  eyes,  and  if 
the  truth  is  to  be  told,  there  prob- 
ably  was. 

But  happy-go-lucky  Peter  Rab- 
bit didn't  let  this  worry  him. 
Hadn't  he  grown  up  from  a  teeny- 
weeny  baby  and  been  smart  enough 
to  escape  all  these  dangers  w^hich 
worried  Mrs.  Peter  so  ?  And  if 
he  could  do  it,  of  course  his  own 
babies  could  do  it,  with  him  to 
teach  them  and  show  them  how. 
Besides,  they  were  too  little  to  go 
outside  of  the  Old  Briar-patch  now. 
Indeed,  they  were  too  little  to  go 


202  MRS.   PETER  RABBIT 

outside  tlielr  nursery,  which  was  in 
a  clump  of  sweet-briar  bushes  in  the 
very  middle  of  the  Old  Briar-patch, 
and  Peter  felt  that  there  they  were 
perfectly  safe. 

^'It  isn^t  time  to  worry  yet/^ 
said  Peter  to  little  Mrs.  Peter,  as 
he  saw  the  fright  in  her  eyes  as 
the  shadow  of  Redtail  passed  over 
them.  "  I  don^t  believe  in  borrow- 
ing trouble.  Time  enough  to 
worry  when  there  is  something  to 
worry  about,  and  that  won^t  be 
until  these  little  scallawags  of  ours 
are  big  enough  to  run  around  and 
get  into  mischief.  Did  you  ever 
see  such  beautiful  babies  in  all 
your  life  ?  ^^ 

For  a  minute  the  worried  look 
left  little  Mrs.  Peter,  and  she  gazed 


PETER  RABBIT'S  NURSERY    203 

at  tlie  four  little  helpless  babies 
fondly.  ''  No/'  she  replied  softly,  ''  I 
never  did.  Oh,  Peter,  they  are 
perfectly  lovely !  This  one  is  the 
perfect  image  of  you,  and  Tm  going 
to  call  him  Little  Pete.  And  don't 
you  think  his  brother  looks  like 
his  grandfather  ?  I  think  we'll 
call  him  Little  Jed." 

Peter  coughed  behind  his  hand 
as  if  something  had  stuck  in 
his  throat.  He  had  no  love  for 
Little  Jed's  grandfather.  Old  Jed 
Thumper,  the  big,  gray,  old  Rabbit 
who  had  tried  so  hard  to  drive 
him  from  the  Old  Pasture,  but  he 
didn't  say  anything.  If  Mrs.  Peter 
wanted  to  name  this  one  Little 
Jed,  he  wouldn't  say  a  word. 
Aloud  he  said : 


204  MRS.   PETER  RABBIT 

^^  I  think,  mj  dear,  that  this 
one  looks  just  as  you  must  have 
looked  when  you  were  little,  and 
so  we'll  call  her  Fuzzy.  And  her 
sister  we'll  call  Wuzzy/'  continued 
Peter.  ^^Was  ever  there  such  a 
splendid  nursery  for  baby  Rab- 
bits ? '' 

"\  don't  believe  there  ever  was, 
Peter.  It's  better  than  my  old 
nursery  in  the  Old  Pasture,"  re- 
plied little  Mrs.  Peter,  as  with  a 
sigh  of  perfect  happiness  she 
stretched  out  beside  their  four 
babies. 

And  Peter  softly  tiptoed  away 
to  the  nearest  sweet-clover  patch 
with  his  heart  almost  bursting  with 
pride. 

Of    the    doings     of    Peter     and 


PETER  RABBIT'S  NURSERY    205 

Mrs.  Peter  Rabbit  and  tlieir  four 
children  there  are  many  more 
stories,  so  many  that  one  book 
will  not  hold  all  of  them.  Be- 
sides, Bowser  the  Hound  insists 
that  I  must  write  a  book  about 
him,  and  I  have  promised  to  do 
it  right  away.  So  the  next  book 
will  be  Bowser  the  Hound. 


GREEN   MEADOW 
SERIES 


By  THORNTON  W.  BURGESS 

With  eight  ilhistration^  in  full  color  by  Harrison  Cady 
Crown  8 vo.         Cloth.         4  vols.         $1.60  net  each 


The  first  volume  in  this  new  series  is — 

HAPPY  JACK 

Mr.  Burgess  is  well  acquainted  with  Happy  Jack  Squirrel's 
thrifty  habits,  and  tells  all  about  them  in  this  first  book. 


The  second  volume  is — 

MRS.  PETER  RABBIT 

Mr.  Burgess  tells  how  Little  Miss  Fuzzytail  became  M:.*s. 
Peter  Rabbit,  and  set  up  housekeeping?  in  the  Old  Briar  Patch. 


The  third  volume  is — 

BOWSER  THE  HOUND 

In  this  book  Mr.  Burgess  tells  how  Bowser  the  Hound  lost 
his  way  while  following  the  trail  of  Old  Man  Coyote. 


The  fourth  volume  is — 

OLD  GRANNY  FOX 

In  this  new  book  Mr.  Burgess  tells  how  Old  Granny  Fox 
shows  little  Reddy  Fox  how  to  obtain  food  during  the  long, 
cold  winter. 

LITTLE,   BROWN  &   CO.,   Publishers 
34  Beacon  St.,  Boston 


THE  BURGESS  BIRD  BOOK 
FOR  CHILDREN 


By  THORNTON  W.   BURGESS 

With  full-color  illustrations  of  58  birds  from  drawings  by 

Louis  Agassiz  Fuertes 

Crown  8vo.     Cloth.     $3.00  net. 


"For  a  number  of  years  parents  have  been  asking  me,  'What 
is  the  best  book  about  birds  for  little  children?'  And  that  ques- 
tion has  given  me  much  trouble.  Now,  'The  Burgess  Bird  Book 
for  Childrtui'  is  the  aiis\>'er.  In  fact,  it  is  the  very  book  that 
'Anxious  Mother,'  the  children  and  the  booksellers  have  been 
awaiting,  for  twenty  years  or  more."  — Z^r.  William  T.  Hornaday, 
Director,  New  York  Zoological  Society. 


A  companion  volume 

THE  BURGESS  ANIMAL  BOOK 
FOR  CHILDREN 

With  3^  full-page  illustrations  in  color  and  16  full-jpage  illustrations 
in  black  and  white  by 
Louis  Agassiz  Fuertes 

Crown  8vo.     Cloth.     $3.00  net. 


This  companion  volume  to  "The  Burgess  Bird  Book  for 
Children"  is  written  in  the  same  vein,  a  story  book  which  is  at 
the  same  time  an  authoritative  handbook  on  the  land  animals  of 
America,  so  describing  them  and  their  habits  that  they  will  be 
instantly  recognized  when  seen. 

LITTLE,   BROWN   &   CO.,   Publishers 
34  Beacox  Street,  Boston 


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